Fallen
by October Breeze
Summary: Yuffie gets a near fatal injury and Squall starts to realize how wrong he is about her. Hidden plot opens after the first few chapters. 'cause it was my first story and I had nothing planned for it
1. Fall

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters or Kingdom Hearts. I think everyone on the site is smart enough to not need one of these damn things, but you never know.  
  
Note: This is my first KH fic. From the behaviors I've seen on KH and what I've read from other stories is what I'm basing the characters around. I just started being a gamer and I have never played Final Fantasy, where almost all of the stories characters come from, if not all. I really hope you enjoy the story. If you're reading this, which you obviously are, please review. Yes, you!  
  
*points at you*  
  
If you don't, I'll be forced to chase after you with a fork or something painful.  
  
*holds up an array of weapons threateningly*  
  
Ha ha ha, nah, I like all of ya to much to hurt you.  
  
...Also, we're going to open the clouds and pretend Traverse Town actually gets sunlight. Nighttime every day is just too depressing to me.  
  
_____________________________________________________________  
  
Yuffie opened the door of the hotel and stepped outside, the slight breeze blowing her short, black hair away from her face. She walked slowly to the edge of the top of Second District and looked down below at the fountain.  
  
It was two months after the Heartless, and life still wasn't close to normal. People were slowly starting to fill up more of the dark, lifeless crevices of Traverse Town, but things between her friends still weren't the same.  
  
Sure, they were still her old friends, but in a way, they changed. Aerith had changed, Cid had changed, Leon had changed, Sora had changed, and Cloud had changed. Heck, she had as well. She was no longer the immature brat some people had dubbed her as, now she was...just different.  
  
She couldn't decide if she liked the change or not. Life would never be the same again, and she was finding it hard to accept that. It almost felt dream-like. She sat on the ledge and let her legs hang over the edge.  
  
"Hey," said a familiar voice to her back. She jumped and nearly fell off the ledge. She turned around, eyes wide. Aerith had crept up on her, again.  
  
"Aerith," she groaned in a friendly way. "You could have killed me."  
  
Aerith looked concerned. "I'm sorry..."  
  
Yuffie rolled her eyes.  
  
"What were you thinking about?" Aerith sat next to her, her pink gown fluttering slightly. She glanced at Yuffie and looked at the fountain, where Yuffie had focused her eyes.  
  
"Nothing," she answered.  
  
"Come on, Yuffie. Something has been on your mind, hasn't it?"  
  
"Sort of. I just...I can't believe things turned out the way they did."  
  
Aerith nodded knowingly, and smiled reassuringly at Yuffie. "I know what you mean. But life happens, you have to accept what comes your way. You grow and change with every experience you have. It's a good thing, really...we're all different, now, but you're still you, as I'm still me, right?"  
  
She sighed. "Yeah."  
  
Aerith touched her shoulder softly and got up.  
  
Yuffie turned and looked at her. "Where are you going?"  
  
"I'm going to go and dig up some of my old books, I think. Read a bit. You should too, it'll take you're mind of things."  
  
"Mm hm."  
  
Aerith left, leaving her lingering fragrance with her. Yuffie watched her leave, and turned around. She wasn't going to follow Aerith's advice, as she had led her to believe. She stared down at the ground below and jumped down, rather clumsily. She hadn't tried the stunt in awhile, having no use to need to jump to get away from the Heartless in a month or so.  
  
She started to fall, flailing her arms, and landed on the ground on her side. She closed her eyes painfully as she heard a crack in her side and a strange, tingly, almost numbing non-existent feeling. She knew she broke something, but she couldn't feel the pain.  
  
She opened her eyes half-way, her vision blurred and moving around. She was aware of a slippery, wet feeling on her head. She heard a loud metal sound, a clank, and footsteps running her way.  
  
"Yuffie?" came an uncharacteristically worried voice. She didn't answer. Someone shook her shoulder roughly. She couldn't muster the strength to say a word. Everything was far away, so far away...  
  
~~~  
  
Leon leaned over Yuffie, who was sprawled on the concrete ground of Second District on her side, blood pouring from her head and injuries who-knows- where-else.  
  
He shook his head, wondering what stupid stunt she had pulled. He wasn't surprised, but he was surprised by his tone of voice, that had meant to come out emotionless. To make up for it, instead of picking her up and taking her to the hotel where Aerith could fix her up and see how bad the damage was, he left her there on the ground in a small pool of blood around her head, uncalculating of the damage that had befallen her.  
  
At a faster pace than a walk, her clomped up the stairs and went into the hotel and knocked on Aerith's and Cloud's room. Now that Cloud had arrived, Yuffie was forced to sleep in his room, seeing as all of the other rooms were taken by other customers.  
  
Aerith opened the door, her eyes glued to a book, thinking no one other than Yuffie would be at her door. She looked up at Leon, and surprise registered on her face.  
  
Leon screwed up his face, knowing what Aerith might do once he told her about Yuffie. "Yuffie did something, and now she's bleeding from her head-"  
  
He couldn't finish his sentence, because Aerith had already dropped her book and pushed past him in a hurry, almost knocking him over. He rubbed his neck and followed her out of politeness.  
  
By the time he got down to Yuffie and Aerith, Aerith had been there for a minute or so and was shaking her head, and looking extremely concerned. If possible, more concerned than usual.  
  
He stood above them. Aerith was down on both knees, holding up Yuffie's bleeding head and murmuring, her eyes flashing with more emotions than he could read successfully.  
  
"Pick her up and carry her to the hotel room. You are such an idiot!" she said, her voice strained.  
  
He was taken aback by her demand and unusual lash of anger. He shrugged and picked her up like a rag doll and threw her over his shoulder, partly disgusted that Yuffie's face was so near his backside. He really couldn't stand her, he really couldn't, and he was only doing this for Aerith and for the remaining human nature he had left.  
  
After the Heartless, everyone had grown considerably closer, all except for Yuffie and him. She rubbed off on him in the wrong way, being more cheerful, peppy, and excitable than he would ever be or want to be. Just the opposite of him.  
  
They had a more tolerant relationship, to say in the least. They got into fights quite often, yelling to each other obscenities and insults. It was a much better way to let out frustrations with each other than in other ways. That was the one thing they agreed on.  
  
Aerith glared daggers at him and told him to handle her more nicely. He sighed heavily and ignored her request, but walked a little more slowly so her head would stop bumping him.  
  
Aerith opened the door of their hotel room and he practically threw her on the bed, and stood next to the two, wondering what to do next.  
  
"What are you standing there for? Get out!" she yelled, looking partly sorry for her outburst after she had said it, but kept her finger pointing to the door. Grumbling, he swung the door open and walked outside.  
  
~~~  
  
Yuffie moaned and opened her eyes, her once-numb side aching with pain, and almost looked like a swollen, large banana in her side. She could feel bandages there, as well as something on her head.  
  
She looked around the room. The windows were covered with the blinds, and nothing could be seen of the outside world.  
  
Something stirred over in the corner of the room. Yuffie blinked a few times and tried to see, but her eyes remained unfocused.  
  
She saw a flash of a pink something, and knew it was Aerith.  
  
"Oh my gosh, thank God you're up!" Aerith dabbed at her head with a cool cloth. Tears were gathering and falling from Aerith's eyes, and sobs were shaking her chest. Yuffie wondered what was making her cry.  
  
"What happened?" Yuffie tried to say, but it came out in a few words that Aerith couldn't understand. With her large green eyes, she cast worried glances at her.  
  
Cloud walked into the room, and saw that Yuffie was awake. He looked extremely relieved. Aerith rushed over to him and took his arm to the other corner of the room, looking exhausted.  
  
Yuffie strained her ears and heard bits and pieces of their conversations, both sounding relieved.  
  
"-thought she wouldn't wake up-"  
  
"-might have been in a coma for a long time-"  
  
"-fatal damage-"  
  
"-stupid idiot-"  
  
"-oh Aerith, don't-"  
  
"-hush, she'll hear us-"  
  
"-don't be silly, she can't focus her eyes-"  
  
"can't really talk-"  
  
After a few minutes of rushed words, they came back to Yuffie. She tried to say something, and she opened her mouth. Her whole body was moving in slow, painful motion compared to theirs, and she could hardly function.  
  
Yuffie felt like screaming. She could barely move from pain and numbness. Her body might not be working, but her insides were moving quickly, and it was driving her insane. She was in a human body cage.  
  
Aerith rubbed her temples and Cloud touched her shoulders concerned. Even if Yuffie couldn't focus well, her ears were fine.  
  
"You're over working yourself, let me take over and watch her," said Cloud, looking at her large, blue-purple bags under her eyes, and her hands that looked shaky from lack of sleep and food.  
  
"No, no, this is my duty, let me sit back down in the chair, right over there..." she said, her voice hoarse, trying to push Cloud off of her arms weakly. It looked more like a pat than anything else.  
  
Alarmed, Cloud gripped Aerith's arms, afraid she would fall over. Despite Yuffie's internal protests, her body fell asleep.  
  
~~~  
  
Leon angrily sat in the Accessory shop on one of the couches, trying to ignore a particularly annoying Moogle that kept bumping into his legs. Cid was behind the counter, chewing on a toothpick.  
  
"Any news on Yuffie?" he asked around the toothpick.  
  
"Nah, the only person Aerith lets in the room is Cloud, and that's hardly ever. She's been in there for three days without more than ten minutes of sleep, and Cloud forced her out of the room so he could take over. She's a nervous wreck."  
  
"I'm not surprised," said Cid, fiddling with something. "Aerith takes on too much responsibility for her friends. I guess she's worried. Hell, no one thought Yuffie would wake up."  
  
Leon threw up his arms. "It wasn't that far of a fall! I don't know what she was thinking. Besides, we've been over this before," he grumbled.  
  
Cid didn't answer him. He continued to fiddle with something behind the counter. The Moogle ran into his legs again. Exasperated, Leon picked up the Moogle by the neck and hurled it into the wall.  
  
Alarmed, the Moogle squeaked and ran into the door, twirled around and ran out into First District. Leon watched it fall down the stairs and come to a rolling halt at the bottom.  
  
"Hey, don't be killin' off the Moogles," Cid said, but didn't put any force into his words. Fed up, Leon headed out of the shop and out into the First District café, sitting down into one of the chairs.  
  
Maybe Yuffie wouldn't have been in a coma for a week if you would have ran to get Aerith, whispered a guilty part of his mind. Maybe if you would have picked her up gently she would have been annoying you now with a non- important event.  
  
"Shut up!" he yelled. People turned around in their chairs to look at him. Bella, the new owner of the café, glanced at him in a concerned way. Embarrassed and angry with himself, he got out of his chair quickly, knocking it over as he walked away from the café and toward the alley in Second District.  
  
~~~  
  
Yuffie opened her eyes and felt pain swelling to her attention. She gasped in surprise at its depth and her eyes widened. Cloud fell over himself to get to her, looking worried.  
  
"What?" he almost yelled, glancing at her.  
  
Yuffie choked on her words.  
  
Cloud, who hadn't relaxed, squinted his eyes.  
  
"I said," she croaked, "It hurts."  
  
"I would get Aerith, but..." He trailed off. Yuffie now just noticed that Cloud looked much like Aerith had, with blue bags under his eyes.  
  
He rubbed a hand over his face, then looked at the ceiling. He found a buzzer in the hotel room and asked the hotel manager to call in a Moogle to find Leon.  
  
The manager obliged and moments later, an annoyed looking Leon entered the room.  
  
"What Clou-" he stopped short when he saw Yuffie. Her eyes were bloodshot, and her arms hung limp at her sides. A bandage was wrapped around her head, and a large swell was coming from her side where she had landed. Aerith's Curaga must not have been able to do much. He knew she had been in a coma, but he always thought people in comas looked like they were sleeping...  
  
Cloud sank into a chair and looked at Leon.  
  
"You have to take over, at least for a day or two. This is killing Aerith and me. I haven't slept in...in...God damnit I can't even remember!"  
  
Leon's face looked like a stone.  
  
"Please?" Cloud asked in an almost begging tone.  
  
"What do I have to do?"  
  
"I know you won't like everything you have to do...but you have to give her a few pills, to keep her resting and asleep, pain relievers, stuff like that. Also tend her bandages, and wake her for food and water. And..."  
  
"What?"  
  
"A sponge bath every other day."  
  
Leon's eyes widened, and he held up his hands, backing away.  
  
"Look, I cannot stand Yuffie. How can you ask me to...to...?"  
  
Cloud didn't say anything, just closed his eyes.  
  
Knowing he was defeated, he threw in the towel.  
  
"Whatever," he muttered.  
  
Cloud got out of his seat and headed out the door, slapping himself to keep himself awake to get to his room.  
  
Yuffie watched Leon through half-lidded eyes. He sat down in a chair near his and Yuffie's bed. She groaned inwardly, and felt very embarrassed. He would see her half naked, if not all the way!  
  
She fell back into sleep, her body not allowing her more time to think.  
  
~~~  
  
Leon stood above Yuffie, holding a soft sponge and a pail of hot water. The sponge was wet and the water was dripping down his hands onto the floor. His face turned pink as he raised her shirt and wiped her soft, flat stomach.  
  
A large, white bandage covered Yuffie's side. The bruise was large and was shaped like a banana, and protruded out of her side at least an inch. He looked away painfully and wiped around it, trying not to stare at her.  
  
Reaching under her shirt, he wiped her chest and realized, to his horror, she wasn't wearing a bra. He hurried to finish, feeling embarrassed beyond breaking point.  
  
He hurried up around her more private areas, blushing furiously at his interest and shamefully finished, pushing the bucket under the bed with his foot. He sunk into the chair. His face still felt heated from the job.  
  
Seconds later, Aerith, looking refreshed after a few days of rest, came into the room. She looked at him cheerfully, and noticed his expression.  
  
"Why is your face so red?" she asked curiously.  
  
"Ugh...sponge bath."  
  
She choked down a laugh and cleared her throat. She glanced at him, a hand over her mouth as she pulled out a container filled with more pills.  
  
"I can't believe all of the stuff you have you give her," he said incredulously after composing his face.  
  
"Head damage is pretty serious, Leon. And she fractured a rib."  
  
He didn't answer, just stared at Yuffie. She was on her back, a hand draped over her stomach and one arm over her head. Her fleshy, warm lips were parted and her black hair fell into her eyes. He pulled his eyes away from her and stood up.  
  
"So I'm off duty?"  
  
"Yep! And to top it all off, we can stop giving Yuffie sleeping pills! She'll still be weak and will have to stay in bed, but it's better than this," she said, pointing to the bed-ridden Yuffie.  
  
"Yeah," he mumbled and pushed open the door of the hotel, leaving Aerith mystified. It wasn't a surprise for Leon to be so withdrawn, but he was even acting stranger than usual.  
  
~~~  
  
After nearly two weeks of sleep, Yuffie awoke to the blinds opened. Sunlight poured in, and for the first time she noticed the cards, balloons, and flowers strewn all over the room from her supporting friends. All had names signed to them. Aerith dominated most of the gifts, but as much as she searched, she couldn't find one with Leon on it.  
  
Yuffie rested her head more comfortably and couldn't help but feel disappointed.  
  
What? Disappointed? You should be pleased!  
  
She sat silently, listening to the birds chirping outside. She liked to think they were welcoming her to the world again. Since the room was allowed sunlight, she wondered if she would be allowed to stay up like a normal person.  
  
Aerith entered the room, carrying a bouquet of flowers from Cid. She set the flowers down and noticed Yuffie. She bounded over to her, looking amazingly excited and happy.  
  
"Oh, Yuffie!" she said, her voice filled with emotion. She clasped her hands in hers. "I am so happy you're okay and up!"  
  
Once again, tears brimmed over Aerith's eyes. She wiped at them, unashamed.  
  
"You-you'll never guess what we thought-well, never mind. That's for later."  
  
Yuffie looked at her confused. "What? What happened? Have I been asleep for two days? Wow!"  
  
Aerith looked at her sadly. "No, Yuffie. For two weeks."  
  
Yuffie tried to sit up, but doubled over in pain. "Two weeks?!" she exclaimed, resting herself.  
  
Aerith nodded her head. Letting go of her hands, she gushed, "We're all so glad to have you back! We needed you to keep our spirits up."  
  
Yuffie groaned. "So how long do I have to stay in this bed?"  
  
"Until you're well rested."  
  
"I think I am!"  
  
"Well, you might not be able to walk. Your muscles are softened from not walking for two weeks. At least you're side is healed."  
  
"I am getting up and going to walk."  
  
"No, you will not. You'll stay in bed and rest."  
  
Yuffie stuffed her head into the pillows and felt like crying.  
  
"Oh Yuffie, I feel your pain, but you have to wait. At the least you have to stay in bed for a week."  
  
Yuffie didn't answer.  
  
"I'll come back to give you your lunch."  
  
Aerith left the room, humming to herself. Yuffie watched her leave. She threw a pillow at the door and huffed.  
  
~~~  
  
Leon sat at the café, sipping a cup of coffee. He couldn't get Yuffie out of his mind. It was annoying him nearly more than she annoyed him. Despite himself, he felt her presence was missed among his friends and shared the same feelings as they did. He never really noticed how much Yuffie hyped everyone up into a better mood. The downfall of Yuffie affected them all more than he expected.  
  
He finished his cup and returned the mug to Bella, who took it from him and set it in the sink. Ignoring her sexually suggestive look, he walked away, shaking his spiky brown hair out of his eyes.  
  
He learned from Cloud that Yuffie had woken up and that she had lost track of time. Obviously, since she had been sleeping and when she was awake for a few minutes she didn't have time or the energy to ask.  
  
He entered the doors to Second District and strode over to a bench near the fountain, around the place where Yuffie fell. He felt so mixed up he didn't know what to do with himself. He wanted to fight invisible enemies in the Waterway, he wanted to throw himself off a building, and he wanted to see Yuffie.  
  
Angry at himself, he punched the other side of the bench and split his knuckles, but successfully bashed through the wood. People turned and stared at him, some of them recognizing him from two months ago, but none he knew personally. He tended to stay away from people, but he was stuck with Aerith, Yuffie, and Cloud as well as Sora and his friends.  
  
He sighed and rubbed his face with his good hand and sprinted to the Accessory shop, wondering where he was getting all of then nervous energy from. He pulled down the stairs that led to the Item Workshop and headed up.  
  
Once Yuffie was hurt, Aerith shooed him into exile and made him sleep up in the workshop. The Moogles never stopped moving around, and the stupid one kept getting stuck under his cot. He was still afraid of Leon ever since he threw him and tried to stay away in vain.  
  
He settled on the cot, his arms tucked under his head. He stared at the ceiling and unintentionally saw Yuffie on the ceiling. He closed his eyes but the image was printed on the inside of his eyelids.  
  
He opened his eyes again and tried to think of something else, but his thoughts kept drifting back to Yuffie. Once he successfully thought about something that had nothing to do with her, he found a way to pull her into it.  
  
He crossed his arms over his chest and pushed a thought out of his mind.  
  
I do NOT like Yuffie.  
  
Satisfied, he closed his eyes once more and fell asleep. 


	2. Heal and Break

Disclaimer: I don't own anything, lay off me.  
  
Note: R&R!  
  
______________________________________________________________________  
  
Yuffie stood up, wobbled, then as she balanced herself she smiled.  
  
'See, Aerith. I can do this.'  
  
Everyday when Aerith wasn't bustling around fluffing pillows or Cid coming in to tell her stories like when she was younger, she practiced walking. She was definitely better than two days ago, but if she fell onto the floor, she would not be able to get up.  
  
She took a few large steps forward and paced around the room, trying to make as little noise as possible. She could feel her leg muscles pull in her thighs and calves, and it felt good.  
  
'Wait until Aerith sees me. She won't know what hit her. I'll stun 'em all.'  
  
Breathing hard, she eased herself upon the bed and laid down on the bed, snapping her eyes shut. If she had to endure any more days of being lonely, bored, and annoyed, she would bust.  
  
She opened her eyes slowly. Ever since she had first woken up, she had missed Squall. But why? She had never really wanted to see him, to hear his voice, to touch his soft, warm lips, the ones that would taste so good on hers once their lips met...Everything had changed, now. She wanted to run her hands through his hair...to...  
  
"Yuffie! Stop it, stop it, STOP IT!" she said to herself harshly. Being stuck up in a stupid room all day had gotten her to thinking more often than usual, and she always thought of Squall. She knew what was happening, but she refused to let herself admit it out loud.  
  
After all...who could like stoic, emotionless, aggravating Squall?  
  
~~~  
  
Leon opened his eyes quickly. Without a single thought, he pulled his legs over the side of the bed and almost throttled a Moogle.  
  
"Damn Moogles..." he muttered under his breath. Was this some weird conspiracy, or were they always huddled around him, trying to get him to blow his top?  
  
They scattered away and took their positions at the Item Workshop, not daring a passing glance at him.  
  
He ran a hand through his hair and went into First District. People turned and stared at him. Some dared to point or laugh.  
  
"Hey, man. What the hell are you, a transvestite wanna-be?" yelled a teenager, laughing with a group of his friends. He glared at him, and the teen glared right back. What the teen was talking about, he had no clue, but it made him angry at his ignorance.  
  
He wandered into Second District and quickly found himself in the hotel lobby, headed towards his room. Yuffie's room, anyway. She had taken it over with get-well balloons and pretty flowers. It was utterly horrible.  
  
He opened the door, she way lying on the bed, staring at the ceiling, her eyes hazy. He crept slowly along the wall. She had not seen him yet. He crouched low on the ground. He was right next to her bedside, just right there.  
  
He stopped short, surprised at how playful he was being. He gave up that kind of act at six. Wait, maybe four. It didn't really matter, but why was he allowing himself frivolous activities when he could be doing other things?  
  
The mood gone, he stood up and startled Yuffie.  
  
"Oh, Squall, I'm going to-"  
  
"Leon," he cut in sharply.  
  
She glared at him, and he glared back, but the look quickly left her face.  
  
"Erm..." she said, her voice full of rich laughter.  
  
Squall rolled his eyes.  
  
"What is on your face? Were you playing in Aerith's makeup bag?" she said incredulously. She held back a peal of laughter.  
  
"What are you talking about?"  
  
Yuffie opened the drawer of her end table and pulled out a mirror and held it up to his face.  
  
Squall's jaw dropped. Bold, red lipstick was done messily on and around his lips, and ugly, blue eye shadow was in a circle around his eyes, like he had gotten punched in a fight. His cheeks were a bright pink blush.  
  
Yuffie burst out laughing.  
  
So now he knew what the teenager said about being a transvestite. And NOW he knew what the Moogles were doing surrounding his bed. He calmly walked into the bathroom, but under the mask he was furious.  
  
He ran the water off the sink and wiped off all of the makeup to the best of his abilities. He came back outside. Yuffie was standing in the middle of the room, trying to get to the able.  
  
"What are you doing up? Get back in bed."  
  
Once Yuffie looked up at him, she started laughing again and lost her balance. She fell on the floor with a loud thud.  
  
"Owwww...my butt!" she exclaimed through gasps of laughter. She held out her hand. "Can you help me up?"  
  
Reluctantly, he grabbed her hand and pulled her up quickly and roughly. Her arms flailed and she fell onto him, knocking them both over onto the bed. Their chests were crushed together. A pink blush spread across her cheeks.  
  
"Can you get off me?" he said.  
  
"I can't."  
  
"What do you mean, you can't?"  
  
"I'm stuck. I don't have the power to roll off of you," she laughed.  
  
Squall sighed. This was just like Yuffie. He held her arms and started to roll her off.  
  
"Ouch! My side, my side!"  
  
"Well how are you going to get off of me? If I make a move to get out from under you I'll hurt you."  
  
Her eyes widened. "What?" he asked.  
  
The door started to open, and Aerith walked in, carrying a bowl of hot soup. She saw them together on the bed, gasped, and dropped the soup. The bowl shattered into pieces on the floor and spilled all over Aerith. She yelped and ran into the bathroom.  
  
"Oh Lord, now look what we're going to have to own up to!" she said in an exasperated tone. With a huge effort, she rolled off of him.  
  
He sat up. "I can finally breathe again! How much DO you weigh, Yuffie?" He was staring at her intensely with a deadpan face.  
  
She blushed again and hit him over the head with a pillow.  
  
"Oh, you...you!"  
  
The corner off his lips turned up slightly.  
  
"Oh my GAWD! Are you smiling?!"  
  
A scowl formed on his face. "What are you talking about?"  
  
"Geez, what a coward. He's afraid to let people see him smile," she taunted. She sat on the bed with crossed legs and relaxed her back against the wall. Squall stood up.  
  
"No, actually. If it weren't for you, I WOULD smile. If it weren't for you, I would still have a room to myself. If it weren't for you, I would have a life!"  
  
Yuffie gaped. How could he say such things to her?  
  
Aerith poked her head out of the bathroom, then came into full view. A large yellow soup stain was visible down the front of her dress, but it had been covered with water.  
  
"Leon, how could you say that to her? That has got to be the worst yet!"  
  
"Who's keeping count? It's true, all of it. If she wouldn't have been such a fool she would still be able to walk. She is the WORST ninja I have ever seen in my life."  
  
Angry tears brimmed along her eyes and threatened to spill. Where was all of this coming from? Is this how he really felt about her?  
  
"Is that how you really feel about me? Is it?" she demanded, trying to control the tremor in her voice.  
  
She stood up and walked toward him with determination. He stood still and watched her. What a fool.  
  
She stood next to him, close enough to feel his breathe. She raised her hand, getting ready to slap him, but he caught her wrist.  
  
Aerith gasped.  
  
"Don't you ever raise your hand at me," he said through clenched teeth.  
  
"You are not the boss of me," she said, yanking her hand back.  
  
She raised her hand again and slapped him across the face. Her tears fell out of her eyes and splattered on the floor. He had cut her deeply. She thought they were getting along so much better, and he went and ruined it.  
  
"How could you?" she yelled.  
  
"Oh, Yuffie, stop, come on, sit down..." Aerith said, pulling her away from him. Yuffie ripped away from her grasp, and with a burst of energy, ran out of the room and out into Second District.  
  
~~~  
  
Squall angrily walked back to the Item Workshop. He hadn't meant to hurt Yuffie's feelings. It was an accident. Well, not an accident, but he really hadn't meant to blow up at her.  
  
He knew he liked her. He realized it now. He more than liked her. He just didn't know how to show his feelings toward her. Every time he pushed her away he wanted her back. When he got to close to someone, he put as much distance between him and the person. In this case, Yuffie. He felt truly bad about what he said.  
  
He opened the door to the Item Workshop and glared at the Moogles. They took one look at his face and realization dawned on them. They scattered into hiding places.  
  
He knelt on one knee and said in a low voice, "Give me the makeup."  
  
A Moogle stumbled and crawled under the couch, then brought out Aerith's makeup bag. Squall snatched it from him, and gripped it in his hands. He left the workshop and went to take it back to Aerith.  
  
The Moogles scampered to their positions.  
  
"Whoa...that was a close on, kupo," said the stupid one.  
  
They murmured in agreement and started synthesizing.  
  
______________________________________________________________________  
  
OH MY GOSH! I hate this, hate this, hate this! This is a really crummy chapter!!!! I have writer's block. And it's really short, and I don't have romance.  
  
Maybe I'll just give this story up. I know I really haven't gotten anywhere, but...well you tell me. Should I go on?  
  
Just review, tell me what you thought...  
  
If I DO give this up, I have another one that I'm working on right now, but I'm not so sure about it. ARGHHH!  
  
*sobs* I never realized how frustrating this would be, as fun as it is! 


	3. A Change

Disclaimer: I didn't own anything in the last two chapters, so OBVIOUSLY I don't own anything now, unless I'm a millionaire with a ton of money that's able to buy Kingdom Hearts and everything along with it. Yeah. I wish.

PLEASE R&R! You know the drill! My weapons haven't rusted!

* * *

Yuffie clenched her hands into fists and stomped through Second District. Dark, heavy clouds brewed overhead, threatening to rain.

She practically just woke up from being almost fatally damaged and Squall had to lay the guilt trip on her. It wasn't her fault, it was an accident. He hurt her feelings so much...did he even realize how he was ripping her into pieces?

Her boots clapped onto the pavement. People moved out of her way and bustled to their homes and stores, trying to avoid the rain that would come falling down at any minute.

"Why can't I be like rain?" Yuffie moaned. She plopped down on a bench and bit her cheek. Rain made its presence known before it fell, had its moment of glory, and then left, leaving puddles that little children loved to splash in. Rain was welcome. Why couldn't she just come and go as she pleased without being scolded?

The sky lit up with lighting and thunder followed a few seconds afterward. Big, wet droplets of rain splattered down and cooled her face. A herd of people ran around frantically, gripping newspapers over their heads and trying to run into First District to the café.

Yuffie sat still for five minutes. The streets were deserted and the sides were starting to flood slightly. The smell of rain wafted up her nose.

She closed her eyes and raised her head to the sky. Her clothes were soaked through and through, and her hair was plastered to her face, but she didn't mind. It felt good...refreshing.

She opened her eyes and saw a dark figure out of the corner of her eye. She turned her head and stared. An old man sat next to her, staring at her intently. She shifted under his gaze, and yet she didn't feel uncomfortable.

"What's yer name, girl?" he asked her.

"Erm...Yuffie," she replied.

The man nodded his head. "The name's Ashford. Nice t'meet ya."

"Uh, yes, you too," Yuffie said as kindly as she could. She pushed her dark bangs out of her eyes and tried to see through the rain.

"What's a girl like you doin' out in the rain? Aren't ya cold?"

"Not really...I'm just fine," she said softly. Something about this man made her soften up and quiet down, like he deserved her respect and time.

His face was filled with generous wrinkles that crinkled over his eyes in a friendly way. A golfing, beret kind of hat in a plaid pattern covered his bald head. He was dressed in a long black coat and a pair of black boots. Propped against the bench was a knobby, wooden walking stick. She reminded him of her late grandfather...a really tough acting guy, but soft underneath it all.

"Hm."

"Hmm?" she said uncertainly.

"I said, hm."

"I know, but...never mind."

"You gotta problem you wanna talk about?"

"I...don't think...well, yeah, actually, I do."

He nodded his head thoughtfully. "I could tell."

"I just recovered from an accident...ahh...I was bedridden for quite awhile. I'm staying here with my friends, Aerith, Cloud, and Squall. You see, we used to live in Hollow Bastion, and then the Heartless overtook it. We traveled here, like most people did.

"We stayed here for a long time, just doing our best you know? Everything started to change...I mean I was forced to grow up and act tough...I just wasn't like that, I'm only seventeen. Squall is so distant, and I just can't connect with him, he is so...emotionless, and it makes me so mad...!"

"And ya like 'im, don't ya?"

"No, no I don't...!" Yuffie said, taken aback. Was it that obvious?

"I might be old but I'm not stupid," he said, and tapped his head with his finger. "This mind ain't startin' to disintegrate, yet."

Yuffie giggled and sighed. "I-I kind of like him, but Squall doesn't like anyone. He hates me, everyone knows so."

"Nah, I'm sure you're mistaken."

"No, I'm not..."

"How do you know?"

"I just do."

"If he hates you so much then maybe he actually likes you."

"No, he doesn't, he hates me!" Yuffie yelled loudly. "Why am I even talking to you?"

She stood up and heard a loud thunder crack. The old man sat on the bench, not moving a muscle. He pulled up the sleeves of his coat and traced three long slash lines that ran from his wrists to his elbow.

"This," he said slowly, "was made by a woman I used to know when I was about twenty-two. There was a huge war goin' on back then. You might know of it...the Killmanian War? Well, I was a soldier and one day I was fighting extra hard. The other army had overtaken most of the men. A was hiding under a log, positioning my gun, when someone jumped onto my back and started scratching me.

"I threw the person off my back and turned around. The person was actually a young woman about sixteen. She was dressed like a soldier from the other side. I drew out my gun, but something stopped me...I couldn't shoot her.

"She was just curled on the ground, saying over and over not to kill her father. Turns out I was aiming at him. I dropped my gun and went to her side. She was in shock or something.

"Anyway, after that I became obsessed with finding her again after I left her by the log. I dropped out of the army and I couldn't stop thinking about her. I wanted to find her and ask her about herself and find out her story and get to know her. But I thought she would reject me.

"After awhile I worked up the courage to find her. I knew she was working as a nurse on the battlefield. I still didn't know WHY she was dressed up as a soldier before but I was about to find out.

"I found her in a tent, treating some wounded men. There was some tension between us, but we started talking, despite the sides we had taken, and found out we had both been thinking about each other.

"We were banned to see each other because of the war by her father. My family didn't mind at all, but...we didn't listen to 'im. We saw each other and married while the war was still going on.

"By that time there was nothing her father could do. He let her go, he had to. She never saw him again...I despise that she couldn't know her father just because he hated our relationship. I wish I would have persuaded her to talk to him to this day."

"B-But what happened to her?" Yuffie asked, dumbfounded.

"She died when she was twenty seven. She was still working as a nurse, and uhh...someone invaded the tent and..." he coughed and choked a little. "I never got to say good-bye."

Yuffie sat next to the man and bit her lip. "I'm sorry..." she whispered.

"No need to say sorry. The thing is, when I worked up the courage to tell her how I really felt, what did I have to lose? Nothing at all. And look...good things came out of it."

"So what are you suggesting?" Yuffie asked hesitantly.

"I think you should follow your heart. It's your decision, of course, but I hope you think about my story," he said. He tipped his hat at her and stood up, gripping his walking stick.

"But what about you? Where are you going?"

"That's not important."

"B-but..." she stuttered. He walked away slowly and into the alley. Yuffie scratched her head. What was that all about?

She sighed and stood up. She would need to get back to the hotel. The rain still wasn't letting up.

She walked slowly towards the stairs leading to the strip. She pushed her wet black hair out of her eyes and ran towards the hotel doors blindly. The rain was distorting her view. Something hard blocked her path. She fell backwards and landed down on her butt.

"OWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!"

"Ahhhggh! Stop that screaming!" Cloud muttered. He held out a hand. Yuffie grabbed it and felt herself being pulled up.

"Where are you going?" Yuffie asked. She looked over her shoulder and rubbed her butt. "Oh my gosh, there's going to be a huge bruise for a month!"

"Settle down, you'll be fine. I'm sorry. I'm going out to find Squall. He hasn't come back and it's already two in the morning."

"Two in the morning! How long have I been out?"

"A long time. I was going to get you, too, but here you are."

"He won't like it if you go and look for him."

"Who cares...Aerith has been having a cow over you two and she doesn't want anyone catching a cold."

"Oh. All right."

Cloud started walking in the opposite direction, carrying his huge sword over his shoulder. She didn't understand why he still carried it around. There were no more Heartless and he scared people with it.

Yuffie smiled and entered the hotel, shaking down to her boots. Aerith was sitting in the lobby, holding a blanket.

"There you are! Look, you're freezing! This isn't good for you to be doing, you just got over your injury!" she muttered in a concerned tone while draping the towel around her and wiping her wet hair with another.

"Aerrriiitthhhhhh!" she whined. "I'm fine, I'm fine, I'm going to take a nice hot bath right now, okay?"

Aerith dropped the towels reluctantly. "Okay, then. Don't overwork yourself!"

Yuffie groaned. All of the sudden Aerith was being so protective of her. Why couldn't she have been like this before?

She walked into her room and grabbed some pajamas and a robe from her drawer and closed the bathroom door.

In five minutes the bathroom was full of steam and the smell of a flowery bubble bath. She sighed as she lowered herself in and soaked.

Yuffie submerged herself into the water and held her breath as it washed over her head and entered her ears and nose. She kept her eyes closed and felt herself melting away...all of her thoughts were swirling to a slow stop...

Slowly she went up for air and sunk down again. Her body was relaxing here...no more troubles...just her, the water, and the good smells...and...

"Yuffie!"

Air bubbles escaped her mouth. She sprang up, gasping. "WHAT!"

"Yuffie, Squall is missing. Cloud can't find him anywhere."

"Is that all? Aerith, he doesn't WANT to be found. Just leave him alone and he'll be sleeping on the floor next to the bed when I wake up."

"No, Cloud found his Gunblade in the fountain at the bottom, and Squall wasn't anywhere."

"Huh?" Squall never went anywhere without his Gunblade. Even if he did, he wouldn't plop it into the water like it was a piece of used bubble gum! He had history with it!

"We're organizing a search party. Are you coming or not? Squall might have been seriously hurt!"

Pause.

"I'm sure he is just fine," Yuffie replied uncertainly. Despite her previous protests, she pulled a towel around herself and drained the tub.

"I'm coming, don't leave without me!"

She heard Aerith's footsteps walking away. Yuffie dressed into her pajamas and pulled the robe around her. No one would see her; it was the dead of night.

She sprinted out into the hallway. Aerith, Cloud, a few Moogles, Cid, and an unfamiliar couple were conversing in a circle. Yuffie stood next to them, her hands on her hips.

"So how is this going to work?" Aerith asked. Yuffie noticed everyone but she was fully dressed and equipped. She rolled her eyes at herself.

"We're going to split into teams. Aerith, you and I will go searching together. You two will go together, and the Moogles will go together. Well, I think that's it," Cloud explained.

Yuffie gaped. She was only standing right next to him!

"Hellooooo? What about me?"

"Oh, you..."

"What do you mean by that?"

Cloud took a step back. "Nothing, I forgot you were coming, I didn't see you."

"Suuure!"

"Look, Yuffie, this isn't time to get offended! Are you all right going by yourself?"

"Yes," she lied. Of course she didn't want to go by herself. It was dark outside, rainy, and weird people walked around.

"Good. Okay, let's move!" Cloud shouted exuberantly. She rolled her eyes. This wasn't a boot camp, was it?

She followed the others out of the hotel.

"At least it stopped raining," she muttered. She took the opposite path down to the fountain. She kneeled by the water and looked in. Underneath the shimmery ripples she saw Squall's Gunblade. She reached in and gripped it with one hand and then the other and pulled it out.

It dropped and clanked heavily onto the ground. She put a hand on her head and stood up.

"Geez, how much does that thing weigh?"

Yuffie left it there and started wandering around. She knew Squall was perfectly fine, but there was a nagging feeling that wouldn't leave the pit of her stomach. Why would he leave his Gunblade there?

She stuffed her hands into her robe and shivered. It was getting awfully cold outside. How long had she been wandering around and thinking? Maybe for a half an hour...where were the others? Did they find him already? She didn't see them going into the hotel.

She glanced around nervously and fell into a hole filled with rain water. She lifted her soggy wet foot out and sighed. This was not her day.

She walked along the side of the brick wall that served as a barrier from the upstairs to the downstairs. A piece of blue cloth was caught on a door of the shoe store.

Hesitantly, she picked it off and held it in her hand. This was the material to Squall's jacket. She looked at it and turned it over. Yes, this was definitely his.

She stuffed it into her pocket and kept on walking. Wherever Squall was, if he was still out, he was somewhere along the way.

She took a few steps forward and spied a dark lump of a figure a few feet ahead. It looked like a person. A hand flew to her mouth and stopped a shriek.

She took a timid step forward, then another, then ran quickly and dropped down next to Squall. He was sprawled out on his side. His soft, dark hair fell over his face and cast shadows over his eyes and nose and deepened his long scar.

She forced her trembling hands to take his pulse. She took his wrist and put her two fingers onto it and held her breath. There was a pulse; it beat very lightly, but there was one.

She let go of his hands and brushed the hair out of his face. There was nothing that seemed to be hurt at all...

A loud hiss and a meow echoed through Yuffie's ears. She jumped and turned around. An orange tabby cat was approaching. Its eyes were golden and were big and almond shaped. It had large paws and large ears. It was the most peculiar looking cat she had ever seen, but it was adorable.

"Hey, little kitty..." Yuffie whispered. It limped over to her, holding its paw up to its chest. She looked under his stomach.

"Aww, what happened to you, little kitty? I see you're a male. You're hurt just like Squall, aren't you?"

The cat purred and rubbed his head onto her hand. She smiled and turned back to Squall and put a finger to her lip.

"But where to put you, Squall...I can't take you to the hotel and get you fixed up by myself..."

"Yuffie!" someone shouted. Cloud and Aerith ran over to her from across the strip. Cloud rested his hands on his knees and bent over, panting heavily.

"You found Squall! What happened to him?" Aerith asked, rushing over to him.

"I checked his pulse. He seems fine...I don't see anything wrong. Except this poor little kitty over here," Yuffie said, and picked up the orange tabby cat. "Can we take him to the hotel? Pleeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaase?"

"Yuffie, we need to get Squall back to the hotel. We don't know what happened to him. Cloud, did you pick up the Gunblade?"

"Yeah, it's right here."

Cloud held the Gunblade in one hand and his weapon in the other.

"Well, we'll carry those back and you can carry Squall."

Cloud nodded and handed the Gunblade to Aerith. Once she had it in her hands she and the Gunblade fell like a heavy piece of iron to the ground.

"Uh-owwwwww..." Aerith moaned. The Gunblade rested against her chest. "Can't...breathe..."

Cloud picked the Gunblade up and chuckled. Aerith slapped his hand after he helped her up. "Don't you laugh at me!"

Cloud heaved Squall up and started toward the hotel.

"Come on, we'll pick this up on three," Yuffie said and gripped one end. Aerith gripped the other.

"One..." Yuffie said slowly.

"Two..." Aerith said with a smile.

"Three!"

At a snail's pace, they made their way to the hotel. Yuffie smiled and looked back at the beautiful orange cat following them, even slower with his broken paw.

Once they reached the hotel, Yuffie eased the Gunblade down and followed Cloud into the hotel. Cloud kicked open the door of their bedroom and placed Squall on the bed carefully. He took Squall's pulse again and shook his head.

"I don't know what happened. He seems fine, just knocked out. We'll have to ask him what happened when he comes to."

Aerith walked in, carrying the cat in her arms. He purred and rubbed his head onto her palm. She smiled down at it and sat on a chair by the bed.

"I don't know where this little kitty came from, but he is so adorable! I guess he's a new stray."

Yuffie sat next to her. "I think we should keep him here. Look, his paw is broken."

She tenderly touched the cat's paw and in return a soft mew of pain came from the cat.

"I can patch him up. What shall we name him?"

"Uhh...Minion!"

"Minion?" Cloud and Aerith asked together, bewildered.

"Uhh...yeah."

"But why?" Aerith asked, shaking her head and laughing.

"I don't know...it fits."

"No it doesn't," Cloud stated.

"Well, what would you name it?"

"Uhh...Cloud," he replied.

"CLOUD!"

He shrugged.

Aerith cleared her throat. "How about...Ranny?"

"Ranny?"

"Yes. He is orange, so you can get it from that."

"But it sounds more like Granny!"

Aerith threw her hands into the air.

"Then how about Meow?" she said sarcastically.

"Yeah!" Cloud and Yuffie said together.

Aerith's eyes widened. "I was kidding!"

A groan came from Squall.

Yuffie ran over to him. She stared down at his face, still so handsome and attractive.

"What happened?" he asked warily.

"You tell us," Cloud answered, sitting in a chair in the opposite way.

"I...I really don't remember..."

Meow, the cat, jumped out of Aerith's arm and limped over to Squall. Squall stared at it blankly, then a shadow fell over his face.

"What is it doing here?" he asked in a deep, menacing voice.

"We found him by you. He's hurt, like you," Yuffie said cheerfully.

"No. Get it out. Get it out _NOW!"_

"Squall, what's the matter with you?" Aerith asked.

"Didn't you HEAR me! GET IT OUT!" he screamed.

"What the hell?" Cloud said.

Yuffie was puzzled. When Aerith slipped and called him 'Squall' he didn't get angry. Well, at least he didn't get angry at her calling him by his real name.

Meow mewed.

Yuffie picked him up in alarm and held him close to her.

_What is wrong with him? _Yuffie wondered.

Squall stood up. Apparently, he had regained himself. He closed in on Yuffie, his eyes set on the cat.

She backed away from him. What was wrong? The cat hissed and leaped out of her arms and darted out the door.

Squall sat down on the bed, a vein uncharacteristically popping out of his forehead. His spiky dark bangs fell over his eyes and sheltered his facial expression.

Aerith and Cloud gave each other a look.

"Sq-Leon, it was just a cat. An innocent _cat._" Aerith insisted.

He shook his head.

"Come on, what's wrong with you?" Cloud asked. He sat next to him.

Squall raised his head and glared at them.

"Get the hell out of my room, all of you! I need time to think!"

Yuffie backed out of the door. How strange.

Aerith passed him one more concerned look and dragged Cloud out of the room with her.

They walked out of the hotel, arm in arm, apparently making their way for the café. Yuffie strayed behind and stuck her head in the door.

Squall was standing by their dresser, holding a very worn, crumpled piece of paper. He cursed under his breath and slipped it away into a drawer. She heard the metallic 'click' of a key being turned. He sat down on the couch and looked out the window.

Yuffie inched into the room. He either didn't know she was there or refused to acknowledge her presence.

"Leon?" she said, carefully remembering to call him by his new name.

"What is it, Yuffie?" he asked harshly.

"We need to talk."

He didn't answer her.

"Leon?"

"What!"

"What's wrong with you, lately? Why were you knocked out by the shops? Why were you so angry at the cat?"

She sat next to him.

"It is none of your business."

Yuffie furrowed her eye brows together. Squall was so secretive. He never told anyone anything. She remembered him from the Hollow Bastion when she was younger. He was always a little bit silent, but she knew she had seen him smile before. She remembered seeing him laugh, and even talk with people.

Her heart ached. What happened to the Squall? What happened to him so terrible that he had such hatred towards everyone? Towards the world?

"Leon..." her voice cracked and held a ring of a pleading tone.

He didn't answer.

"What happened to you...?"

He looked at her sharply. "What do you mean?"

"Why are you like this? I've never seen you sport any emotion whatsoever except your rage. What happened? I remember you when I was younger. You were different."

"Times change."

"Why won't you tell me anything?" she asked. Her voice trembled and her eyes started to water. Her chest felt hollow. Is that how he felt? Hollow?

He averted his eyes. She bit her lip and flung toward him and threw her arms around his neck. She hugged him hard, hoping he would feel something, anything, to draw a string of tenderness just to reassure her he was a feeling, emotion filled human.

Her throat tightened up and her heart cracked.

"Leon..." she whispered. She withdrew herself from him and looked down at his face. He kept his eyes away from hers and didn't say anything. Strange for him to not say anything after what she did. Before he might have yelled at her.

"Haven't you ever been held before? Haven't you ever loved anyone, ever felt anything?"

She stared down into his eyes. Did he have a mother to soothe his wounds when he was a child in Hollow Bastion? A father to teach him ball? Someone to read to him at night? To wipe his tears when he had a nightmare?

What about someone to ask him where he was going when he was older...or someone to reassure him when in pain? To tell him to follow his dreams?

_Or was he always alone...?_

"Yuffie...please...leave me alone..." he said hoarsely.

"I don't want to. I think you need someone right now."

"I don't need anyone. I can take care of myself."

"Surely you haven't always thought that."

"You have to depend on yourself, because in the end you'll lose everything, anyway."

"That isn't true."

"Yes it is. I know, it's happened to me."

She shook her head.

"I just hugged you a few seconds ago. Will that ever leave you? Won't you always have that with you in your heart, somewhere, tucked away, that will never leave? Unless you develop a freak case of amnesia or something, but..."

She laughed. There. That sounded more like her. For a minute there, she was afraid she was turning into an Aerith clone. Where did she learn all of this, anyway?

Squall shook his head. "You don't understand. You haven't lost anything. You've had everything you've ever wanted."

Yuffie narrowed her eyes. "ME! Me? I have never had anything that I have ever wanted! Where is my family now? Why can't we be back in Hollow Bastion? BECAUSE I can't bear to be there, Squall! I have to many horrible memories back there! That's why we ALL agreed to live in Traverse Town! To try and hide away what we fear the most! And what do I have? A few friends who don't take me seriously enough, that's what!"

Finally, he looked at her. "I never knew that's how you felt."

"I bet you don't know a lot about me!"

"Guess not."

"Why are you like that? It hurts me, Squall, it hurts everyone around you!"

"Why do you have to beat me up? Why do you bring up everything now?"

"Because, when do you allow me to talk! You don't let us talk to you, you push us away, especially when you need us most. Well, get it through your thick head that you can't go on without friends!"

He shook his head.

"Stop shaking your head at me. I am, for once, correct."

"Maybe, maybe not. It depends who you're asking."

Yuffie sighed. She just couldn't win with him. She leaned into the couch and turned away from him. She curled her knees up to her stomach and leaned herself against the arm of the couch.

A few minutes went by.

"Yuffie..." he said slowly.

"What?"

"You're right."

"I am?" she asked in awe.

"Do you need me to write it down with my signature?"

"Yes."

He stood up. "Well I'm not doing that."

Yuffie grinned. She stood up. He was almost a head taller than her.

"Squall?"

"Leon..."

"Squall?"

He sighed. "What?"

Yuffie smiled sincerely. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it."

"That's impossible," she said.

"I knew it."

She threw her arms around his neck for the last time and hugged him. A chill ran up her spine and a spark of happiness ignited within her when he hugged her a little bit back.

Yuffie kissed his cheek and bolted out of the room. He stood a moment longer and watched her go, then laid down on the bed.

* * *

AHHH, _YES! _We have some Squffie going on, now! I like this chapter! Amazing, isn't it! Don't forget to review! I promise to have some real action going on and a huge explanation on some of Squall's past (that I made up and has nothing to do with Final Fantasy 8). So, some questions to think about:

Who is the mysterious cat Meow?

Why was Squall so angry to see it?

What was the crumpled piece of paper Squall was holding?

When will the REAL SQUFFIE start?

Finally, will Squall allow Yuffie to call him Squall forever?

DUN DUN DUN!


	4. Vanera, A Friend

Disclaimer: Unless we have a three year old attempting to read a PG-13 rated story, I don't think we all need a disclaimer. Three year olds can't read many words. So there. 

Note: Please review after reading my story! I promise I won't threaten Yuffie anymore like I have been. I swear it!

*lets Yuffie run away* 

*A police voice calls out, "Then drop you weapons and raise your hands in the air!"* 

*drops weapons and raises hands in the air. "Like you just don't care!"*

*The policeman nods his head and waves his hands in the air. "Put ya hands in da air, like ya just don't care!"

*runs away and the policeman entertains himself by repeatedly waving his hands in the air and singing at the top of his lungs*

*smiles and cackles evilly* 

Easy as pie! Anyway, like I said, I let her go, and I escaped being in jail for holding her hostage, so REVIEW! R-E-V-I-E-W! It's not that hard! 

______________________________________________________________________________

Yuffie leaned against the wall of the hotel, shaking her head. She couldn't believe what she had just done. She had hugged Squall, twice, and he let her. She laughed nervously and waited for Aerith and Cloud to come back. 

The moon shone in the sky like a beacon and dropped its beam of milky light across Traverse Town. Tiny little stars glittered away in the distance, winking at her and waving. She had grown used to never seeing sunlight. She wondered if she ever found a way to leave Traverse Town, would her eyes become blind from seeing the sun after it left her view for so long? 

Aerith and Cloud walked up the stairs to the hotel, hand in hand. They saw Yuffie and stood in front of her. 

"So how is he?" Aerith asked. 

"I think he'll be fine. You know him..." Yuffie said. 

"Uh-huh, well, that's good. Yuffie, I think you need to call it a night. It's 4:00 in the morning and the bags under your eyes look like lemons." 

"Lemons?" Yuffie rolled her eyes. She pushed open the door and went into the Green Room. Squall was still sitting on the couch, staring out the window. If he could, he would sit there and think until he grew a beard and wrinkles. 

She crawled into bed and curled under the covers. The light was already turned off. She closed her eyes and tried to count sheep. 

_One..._she thought after she envisioned a fluffy white lamb jumping over a fence. 

_Two..._

_Three..._

_Four..._

_Five..._

_Six..._

_Seven..._

Yuffie opened her eyes and yawned. She rubbed her eyes and pushed the layered blankets off of her body and pulled her legs over the side of the bed and slipped her feet into fuzzy pink slippers. 

She stood up and almost tripped over Squall in the process. 

"Watch it..." she heard him saw groggily. 

"Yeah, yeah, yeah..." 

She stumbled through the darkness and over to the dresser. The moon supplied just enough light for her to see. She pulled a drawer open and took out a pair of khaki shorts and a black floral tank top. A piece of crumpled up paper fell from her bundle of clothes. 

"What's this?" Yuffie murmured as she bent down to pick it up. A flashback from yesterday ran across her mind. Before she talked to Squall, he had been looking at a piece of paper and swearing under his breath. 

She held it out into the light and squinted her eyes and tried to read it. 

_I'll come back for you. Whenever you think I'm not around, I will be. Whenever you think you're safe, be afraid. I'll never forgive you for what you did to me. You ruined me. I'll come back for you, that's my oath to you. And the irony of it: I'll be in one of the most innocent forms of all. _

_Damien_

Yuffie quickly stuffed the piece of paper into the dresser. She shouldn't have been reading Squall's personal letters. She should have known better. But...what was that note all about? Who was Damien? She was starting to become more and more confused by the second. 

She left the dresser and walked into the bathroom with a towel draped over her shoulder. Once she turned it on, the steamy mist covered the bathroom mirror and made her cold body have goose bumps. 

She washed as quickly as she could and hopped out and dried off with her towel. She pulled on the khaki shorts and black, floral tank top and put her white headband in her hair without bothering to wait for it to dry. 

When she opened the door of the bathroom, Squall was already up. He was sitting on the bed in a pair of sweats and nothing else. Yuffie blushed, and for once was glad that Traverse Town was dark. He raised his eyes and when he saw her he stood up and pushed past her to get to the bathroom. 

She released her breath without realizing she had been holding it. 

_Get a hold of yourself, Yuf. Control your emotions and everything will be fine. _

~~~

Yuffie sat in the café with a tired Aerith. She gripped her hot chocolate with both of her hands like a little kid would. Aerith took a swig of her black coffee and sighed. 

She smiled at Aerith. She was so happy that she would have time to spend with her. Ever since Cloud came back, Aerith had no time for her and spent every waking minute doing _everything_ with Cloud. Yes, everything. You could just imagine the possibilities. 

"We've come a long way, haven't we?" Aerith said softly. 

"Yes. We have."

"I'm proud of you, Yuffie." 

Yuffie have her a puzzled look. "Why?"

Aerith looked at her hands. "You've grown so much. I know everything must have been so hard on you. The Heartless, growing up, then falling and getting injured, and dealing with life. You have become less selfish and much more tolerant." 

She blushed. Was all of that true, or was it just a conversation? 

"Thanks, I guess," she said. She took a sip of hot chocolate so she wouldn't have to say anything. 

Aerith tilted her head and played with her long, auburn hair that fell over her shoulder in a long braid. 

"What do you want to do for your eighteenth birthday?" Aerith asked suddenly. 

"Huh?" 

Yuffie slapped her forehead. Of course! Her birthday was less than a week away. 

"Don't tell me you forgot!" Aerith exclaimed. 

"Yes, I guess I did," she replied weakly. Then she cheered up. "Wow, I can't wait! What are you going to get me?!"

She laughed. "Well, if I told you, what kind of surprise would that be?"

Yuffie groaned. "That spoils everything." 

Aerith clicked her tongue against her teeth. 

"Well, it does!" 

Aerith sighed and took another sip of coffee. "Gosh, I don't know the last time I was this tired, but I hope this coffee kicks in soon..." 

"I feel fine. Did you go to bed when I did?" 

Aerith looked like she was trying to choose her words carefully and averted her eyes. 

"No." 

Yuffie's jaw dropped. "Don't tell me you were...!" 

"No! Yuffie, stop thinking like that!" 

"So what _did _you do?" 

"Ermm..." Aerith blushed. "Well, not really anything _serious, _I mean...we just..." 

A sly grin spread across Yuffie's face. She winked at Aerith. 

"Oh, Yuffie, I take the whole growing up thing back! I'm an adult, and I should be able to kiss my lover without people making a big deal about it!"

"Kiss? I wasn't thinking that," Yuffie said in a disappointed tone. "I thought you were planning me a surprise party all night. But thanks for telling me, anyway." 

Aerith flushed. Yuffie giggled and sipped up some whipped cream from her beverage. 

Cloud approached them, his spiky blonde hair fluttering over his deep blue eyes. He stopped next to them and kissed Aerith's cheek. 

Aerith looked flustered. 

Cloud passed her a bewildered look. "What's up with you?" 

"Nothing," she said quickly. Yuffie snorted and got whipped cream up her nose. 

"Ahh!" She took a napkin and blew hard. 

"Oh, Yuffie, that is disgusting!" Cloud said. 

"Well, how would you like it if you snorted whipped cream up your nose?" 

He grinned and sat next to Aerith. She leaned her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes. 

Yuffie stared on enviously. She had never had a special someone in her life, before. She usually scared off any guys that seemed remotely interested. Cloud stroked her hair. 

She looked away. Something rubbed against her leg. She felt a rumbling sound. "Oh!" 

She looked under the table and saw a pair of golden eyes staring back at her. She reached in and pulled up Meow. 

"Look, it's our little friend!" she said happily. Aerith opened an eye. 

"I forgot to fix Meow's little paw..." she said absently. She yawned and took his paw in her hand and murmured a few words, and a green light filtered out of her fingers. Meow purred contently. When Aerith pulled away, his paw looked as good as new. 

"Can we keep him at the hotel? The hotel manager wouldn't mind!" Yuffie pleaded. 

"You would be keeping him in your room, and I don't think Squall would enjoy that," Cloud reminded her. 

"I KNOW, but I think I can persuade him to let me. Especially since my birthday's coming up..."

Cloud's eyes widened. 

"Did you forget?" Yuffie asked. 

"No, I...uhh..."

"Don't worry," she said. "I forgot, too!"

She smiled happily. She loved it when this happened; for no reason at all she would get happy mood swings where virtually nothing bothered her. She would shout and jump around and just be...euphoric. 

Yuffie stood up and drank the last of the hot chocolate, which had turned lukewarm after hanging around the café for too long. But now what to do? 

She left the glass on the table for the busboy to clean it up and left Aerith and Cloud to spend some time alone. Not that they needed it. 

Her boots clapped onto the pavement. A small smile graced her lips and didn't leave. People who spared her a passing glance might have thought she was thinking about an inside joke; or even planning to do a mischievous thing, like pull a prank on someone. 

She heard a small meow from behind her. She turned around. It was Meow. She knelt down and held out her hands and made small, welcoming noises. 

"Here, Meow, here, kitty, kitty, kitty!" she called out in a sing-song voice. 

Meow padded forward, his graceful paws touching the ground for only a split second. He rubbed his head against her hand and purred. She grinned and picked him up. 

"It doesn't really matter what Squall says. You are going to be my cat no matter what. I can't let you go!" she whispered to him while scratching his head. 

She stopped in front of the hotel and let the cat go. 

"I'll come back for you," she said softly.

She walked into the lobby and opened the door of the Green Room. 

She glanced around the room. Funny. He wasn't there. 

"Where could he be?" she said with a scowl. 

She ran out of the hotel. Meow was no where in sight. She sighed and started walking with a steady pace down the strip, glancing into shop windows to see if Squall was in one. 

"Not this one..." she said absently. "Or this one...or this one...or this one...or—" 

Yuffie stopped in front of Vanera's Armor and Weaponry. Squall was inside, talking to Vanera, the owner of the shop. Vanera was one tough chick and had been through a lot of adversity, although she was only about twenty-two. She was down to earth and would say it like it is, even if it might hurt someone's feelings. Yuffie respected her greatly. 

She didn't know much about her, only that she had lived in Traverse Town long, long before the other people came, after the Heartless destroyed their worlds. She also knew that Vanera's parents had started the shop, but they were killed later on and Vanera, already at the age of fifteen, had to live on her own. 

The last thing she knew was that Vanera had a strong will to prove herself and had done many dangerous jobs for people. She was surprised that she hadn't even come out with a scratch. 

She walked into the shop. The little bell jangled. Squall and Vanera turned and looked at her. 

Vanera grinned when she saw her. 

"Yuffie! I haven't seen you for the longest time! Why haven't you come to visit me?" she scolded and ran over to her. She wrapped her in a warm hug and pulled away, gripping Yuffie's shoulders and studying her. 

"How has life been treating you?" she asked before Yuffie could get in a word. 

"Good, I'm really good. How have you been?" 

"Oh, I've been good. This store has had a lot of customers lately. Leon over here was just asking for an upgrade and full clean-up for his Gunblade," she replied. 

Yuffie nodded. "It looks like you've had your hands full." 

Vanera had her long brunette hair up in a ponytail. Strands fell out and framed her face. She had a long red streak of paint across one cheek and a splash of blue paint on her loose khaki overalls. A huge stain of blue was on her white tank top. Although she was messy looking, her blue eyes looked as clean and clear as ever. 

Vanera laughed. "I've been trying to repaint the place," she said with a laughter rich tone and held up a broken paint brush, "But I haven't been having much luck. I thought this would be easy, but look at me! I'm wearing overalls and I have paint all over me." 

She slapped her forehead. "Oh my gosh! You're birthday is in less than a week! When's the party?" 

"I'm not really sure if I'm having one or not. But...in a way, that's why I came here. I wanted to ask Leon something." 

"Okay, well, I'll just be organizing some shelves over here," she replied. Dismay was written all across her face in black marker. You could read her facial expressions as easily as a book. Obviously, organizing was a job she hated. 

Yuffie clasped her hands and slowly walked to Squall. He was examining a rack of fighting gloves carefully. 

"Leon?" she asked. 

He turned around, holding a pair. He put it down and looked up. "What is it?" 

"Well, you know how...how we sleep in the same room?" 

He didn't answer her. 

"Well, okay, you know. But that cat that had the broken paw, well, my birthday is coming up and I was hoping you would let me keep him." 

Throughout the sentence his face grew darker. 

"No," he said. 

"No? But why? My birthday is coming up and he is adorable!" 

"No." 

"Please?"

"No, Yuffie!" 

"Why not?!" 

"Because I said so."

"You're not my father, or my brother! I can do what I want!"

"I might as well be. You are _NOT_ to bring that cat into the hotel under _ANY _circumstance, do you hear me?" he said and gripped her shoulders roughly. 

Yuffie squirmed and couldn't get away. A loud, involuntary cry escaped her throat. He let her go and narrowed his eyes. "Do you hear me?" 

Vanera came running over, looking concerned. "What's going on over here? Why are you two fighting?" 

Squall shook his head. "It's none of your business." 

Yuffie rubbed her shoulders and felt a stabbing pain. She would be bruised up for forever, if he hadn't broken it. Vanera pulled Yuffie's tank top sleeve down and examined her shoulders. They were red and puffy already. Vanera gave Squall a look. 

"Why would you do that to someone?" she asked.

"It's none of your business, as I stressed before. She doesn't know when to stop asking for something when I say no." 

Vanera arched her eyebrows. "All Yuffie was asking for was a cat. Why do you have to raise your temper?"

"Were you eavesdropping?"

"No, you were being very loud."

"Look, my business and Yuffie's business is none of your concern."

"Yuffie is a good friend of mine, and I don't want her getting hurt."

"She won't be." 

Vanera pushed a few strands of brunette hair out of her eyes and without a word, walked over to the shelves she was arranging.

_Uh-oh, _Yuffie thought. _Now Squall is going to be pissed at Vanera. One of the only people he usually gets along well with. _

Squall watched as she walked away and clenched his fists. Although he didn't talk much, when people did something like that, he got extremely angry. 

"Why can't I keep the cat?" she persisted. 

He ignored her and walked down the aisle to a set up of different plaited boots. He picked up a pair and studied them. Yuffie walked up to him again and poked his ribs. 

"I'm talking to you!" 

"Go ahead."

"Stop this! What the hell is wrong with keeping a cat?"

"It's not what you think! It's not that simple!" 

Squall stormed out of the store, gripping his Gunblade.

"Hey...I thought I was...fixing that up for you...?" Vanera said as he walked out of the store. "Guess not..."

Yuffie sighed. "Vanera, what am I doing wrong? What? I thought everything was going well, but now he is getting mad at me over wanting a cat!" 

"Yuffie, you're not doing anything wrong. Just try to ignore him."

"It's not that simple..." Yuffie covered up her face with her hands and then straightened up. 

Vanera pulled her into a warm hug. She smelled like wet paint and mint. 

"Thanks, Van. I think I need that." 

She hugged her back then pulled away. "Everything is happening so quickly...I feel like I don't know what's going on." 

Vanera nodded slightly. "I feel like that sometimes. Trust yourself, and trust me. Everything will work out in the end...it always does." 

Yuffie nodded and walked out of the store, feeling downhearted. It is true...she had grown up. She wasn't the same peppy, cheerful Yuffie at all. She was acting like a serious blob of an adult. 

______________________________________________________________________________

Hey...I have writer's block and decided to end the chapter here. So, I still haven't answered most of the questions of my last chapter but it might become clearer in the next chappie. Anyways...keep reading and reviewing! It's that little go button...down there...to the bottom left. There, that's it!!!


	5. Damien

Disclaimer: Oh, I almost forgot! I'm not making these anymore. Think, people, and think hard about why I would be on a fan fiction site...because I'm only a fan! Hee hee...

Note: PLEASE REVIEW! It seems like I have been getting less and less reviews for my stories lately. Just because I have more than ten doesn't mean anything! *sniffle, sniffle*

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"Pass the mashed potatoes, please," Aerith asked politely to anyone willing to give her the bowl of steamy potatoes.

Cloud picked it up and passed it to her.

"Thank you, Cloud," Aerith said with a smile in a mechanical voice.

"Sure, Aerith," he said in the same way and grinned. 

"Now, maybe _Leon or Yuffie _will please pass me the rolls?" Aerith asked. 

Yuffie and Leon both reluctantly reached for the plate of roles at the same time and touched hands. They both reached away and turned from each other.

"Oh come on, what is going on?" Aerith asked. She looked pointedly from one to the other.

"LEON won't let me have the cat!" Yuffie burst out.

He shook his head. "And I have a good reason, too."

"And what's that?" Yuffie asked in a loud voice. "We'd all like to know!"

"My business is none of your business."

Cloud raised his eyebrows and started eating his roast beef. 

"Let us try and talk this out in a sensible, adult fashion. Leon? Why do you not want Yuffie to have the cat?"

Squall slammed his fist onto the table. "Damnit! I can't keep anything here to myself can I?"

"No! We all live together! We are a team! We hide nothing from you!" Yuffie retorted.

Squall pushed back his chair and it fell over with a loud clank. 

"That's it, I'm out of here," he growled. He stormed out of the room. 

Cloud and Aerith watched him walk out of the room in surprise.

"What was that all about?" Cloud asked.

"I don't know…" Yuffie said. She stood up and ran after him.

"Yuffie—where are you going?"

"To find Squall!" she answered while running out the door. 

Yuffie glanced around the hotel lobby, but he was no where in sight. She walked out into Second District and saw him walking towards the alley. She waved her hand high in the air and shouted, "Leon! Wait up!" 

She burst into a sprint and tried to catch up with the quick paced Squall. She darted past Vanera's Armor and Weaponry shop. Vanera was outside the shop, taping a sign onto the window. She watched Yuffie with a bewildered expression. 

"Yuffie?! Where are you going in such a hurry?!" Vanera asked.

But Yuffie didn't hear her. She pushed open the doors to the alley. She looked left and right but Squall wasn't in her eye range.

"Sq-Squall?" she whispered as loudly as she could. She didn't know why she was whispering; only that she felt tenseness in the air. She cautiously walked around some boxes and knelt on the ground. She peered over them.

"Stay away, Damien. This isn't your place, here. Drop your grudge already," came an angry voice.

"I will never stay away, Squall. Remember my letter? I stuck true to my word." 

She furrowed her brows together. Damien…Damien…She had heard that name somewhere before!

"Oh!" she exclaimed. Her eyes widened and she realized her mistake. She clamped a hand over her mouth and ducked under the boxes.

"What was that?" Damien asked quickly.

"I didn't hear anything."

Yuffie relaxed. Of course! She had read a note addressed to Squall from Damien! It was a threat of some kind. 

The sound of metal against metal resounded through the alley. Someone had drawn their sword. It must have been Damien, because Squall never kept it sheathed.

She glanced over the boxes again. Whoever Damien was, he was in the shadows. She only saw his tall, dark figure against the wall. 

"You don't want to do this, Damien. Remember last time?" Squall reasoned. 

"That was before. The past it behind us, Squallie."

_Squallie?__ Who is this guy? _

"Then why can't you give it up? You need to get help...I can help you." 

"I've seen how you act. You never offer your help to anyone."

"Take it or leave it. I'm only offering once. I'm giving you a second chance, right now, to regain your dignity. You say no, I'll kill you and won't look back."

There was a pause, and only there breathing could be heard. Yuffie held her breath and waited for the answer. 

"…Never."

There was a long slicing sound and a gun shot. A loud hissing moan rang in her ears like something she had never heard. It almost sounded human. She whimpered and covered her ears. 

The sound stopped as quickly as it started. She opened her eyes and stood up onto her knees, the cold gravel digging into her skin. She bit her lip and tried to see into the darkness. Where had Squall gone?

She stood up slowly and turned around. Squall was standing next to her.

"What are you doing here?" he growled in a deep, low voice. 

"N-n-n-nothing, I just…just…" 

"Get out of my sight!" he yelled in rage. Her eyes filled with tears and she ran out of the alley. 

He stood a moment longer, watching her leave, and walked in the opposite direction, gripping his Gunblade over his shoulder. 

~~~

Yuffie lay on her side in a long lacy white nightgown that was fresh from the dryer. Her hair was half wet and she smelled slightly of a fragrant soap. She gripped the sheets close to her body, her legs curled up to her stomach like how she used to lay when she was just a child. 

A child…everything is so simple when you're a kid. So black and white. You have others to depend on that will be there for you always…you always know you have a warm bed…and have such a sense of security. She didn't have that…she never felt safe or especially happy anymore.

Her friends cared about her, so she tried to be happy like they expected of her. They wanted to believe she was happy. So she was. 

Did they look down upon her as a child? As simply a little annoying bug that buzzed in their ears? Did they wonder why she had no friends of her own age…? It's not like it was her fault. She was always slightly older and slightly more mature than all of the others her age. She had to be strong and she grew up much faster than she had to, as she had told herself over and over.

Or was it simply self pity? Maybe she really was that worthless…

She closed her eyes. She couldn't bear it. She couldn't bear the pressure that beat down on her everyday. No one could realize that. They never would. She didn't understand why it was there, herself.

She heard the door open and heavy footsteps walking across the floor. She put a hand on her cheek and felt wetness. She just realized she had tears dripping out of her eyes. 

She wiped them up and listened for Squall to do what he did every night. Put his Gunblade down, take off his boots, brush his teeth, and go to bed. Usually in the clothes he had worn. He was too tired every night to bother with pajamas. 

He lay down on the bed without a blanket and turned off the lamp. She listened for a time; his steady breathing eventually growing softer until she was positive he was asleep. Only then did she relax.

She buried her head in her pillow, about to go to sleep, but a loud, sobbing cry violently escaped her mouth instead. A life time's worth of sobs suppressed to only silent tears to pretend she was okay tore out of her throat and into the pillow. 

~~~ 

_A little girl with short black hair and big hazel eyes walked down an empty hallway. She looked about five years old, and adorably sweet. Loud voices were coming from a doorway just up ahead._

_She walked at a slow pace. Her mother had given her a new dress, a pink dress, and she hated both of those. But together, they were even worse. An older friend of hers always wore something like that. If she walked slow, then the dress wouldn't billow around her and give her the full effect of wearing a dress._

_She stopped by the door and looked inside. It looked to be a bar. A long counter ran across the room with barstools pulled up next to them, filled with men young and old. _

_Two young guys stood by the door, looking a little out of place. They were too young to be drinking._

_One had brown hair and blue eyes. He was tall and had the biggest weapon she had ever seen. He was fairly muscled and had a strong build. The other one was a little bit shorter, a little bit lankier, with a strange look that she couldn't put her finger on. He had golden red hair and strange yellow eyes. They both had angry looks on their faces._

_"Stop this, Damien! Do you see yourself! You're doing things that are more and more dangerous to yourself and others around you! People are going to start finding out! They'll put two and two together, and things will change around you so fast you won't know what hit you."_

_"Shut up, Squall...or should I say Squallie? Can't take the heat, Squallie? I don't know why you carry around that weapon if you never use it, anymore. What happened to the good days where me and you both did it? We were a team"_

_"I pulled myself out when it got too dangerous, just like you should have done."_

_"No! What happened to you? A few months ago you would have been with me all the way, ready to get my back!"_

_Squall started to squeeze his weapon's blade harder. _

_"Getting you angry, Squallie? Guess some people only hear what—"_

_His sentence was cut short when Squall pushed him against the wall and held the weapon to his neck. _

_The little girl's eyes widened and she ran past the doorway. She bumped into someone. She fell backwards with an 'oof' and onto the floor. _

_"Yuffie!__ What are you doing over here? You aren't allowed down this way!" a pink clad girl scolded. She was older than her by a few years._

_She grasped her hand and pulled the girl up. _

_"Wait until your mother hears about this. You know the rules!"_

_"But what were you doin' down hee-a?" the little girl asked with the typical child lisp. _

_"Your mother sent me to find you and I knew where you probably went," she replied in a calm but firm voice. _

_The child was pulled forward. She spared a glance over her shoulder and saw the boy with dark hair walking out of the bar, looking angry. _

~~~

Yuffie opened her eyes slowly, the impact of the dream hitting her. It wasn't just a dream...it was a memory. She remembered that day, now. Her mother made her wear a horrifying dress and that's the first time she saw Squall up close.

She felt a small smile spreading across her lips despite herself. She was partially happy that she remembered, but also sad. When she left Hollow Bastion, she slowly made new memories and pushed all of the painful ones behind her. She slowly forgot them all...now they were hazy around the edges or completely forgotten. 

The bedside next to her was empty. Squall was always up before her. She didn't know how he did it. She could hardly open her eyes most of the time. 

She picked up a pair of khaki shorts from her drawer and took off her nightgown. She pulled the shorts on and started rifling through Squall's closet.

She grinned with pleasure just imagining his reaction. When she was younger and just arrived at Hollow Bastion with Squall, Aerith, and Cid, she and Aerith were caught in a fire and lost all of their clothes when they were still living and sleeping in the alley. Squall had to lend them his clothing.

She had loved wearing his shirts that were two or three sizes too big for her. They were comfortable and smelled like him. She felt...safer, somehow. Hopefully he wouldn't get angry...she wouldn't be able to take it. She just wanted to apologize.

She pulled out a white T-shirt and put it on over her shorts. The T-shirt went past her shorts to her knees. She tucked in the front side so the back still hung out like a tail. 

She attached her belt onto her waist and skipped out of the room, feeling joyous for discovering who Damien was and remembering one slightly happy memory.

The streets in Second District were more crowded than usual. She leaned over the side and looked down, and instantly felt dizzy. Not too long ago, she had fallen onto the hard cement and was in a coma. Ever since she felt nauseous around the same spot.

Still, she steadied herself and looked at the people. There was a surprising number...what was going on? She noticed a bunch of stands with merchants yelling out to people as they passed by.

She bit her lip. It was the Killmania Festival already? _(A/N: I think in like the_ _second or third chapter Ashton explained a story involving the Killmanian War. More information will up in oncoming chapters, I believe.) _It seemed like it just came a couple of months ago. 

With even more energy, she ran as fast as she could down to the main floor of Second District. The Killmania Festival was her favorite part of the year. It was a commemoration for those who died in the infamous Killmanian War, as well as the veterans who served and still living lives. 

Since she first came to Traverse Town, everyone traveled far and wide to see the amazing sights and buy from the most renowned merchants in the world, who set up their stands in the very early morning before anyone is up. It took up all three districts and lasted for three days, because the war lasted for three years. 

With a large smile on her face, she jumped from stand to stand, admiring the beautiful trinkets and fragrant flowers. Some stands had hot foods and beverages. She stopped in front of a hot dog stand and shoved her hands into her pockets for some Munny.

She pulled out some pocket lint, three buttons, two pennies, a pin, a sticker, scrap papers, a pocket flashlight, a stick of gum, a picture of Aerith, Cloud, Cid, her, and an annoyed looking Squall, a hair band...

Ten minutes later, there was a long line of people waiting for hot dogs and the hot dog man was tapping his foot impatiently. 

Yuffie simpered_ (A/N: Yes, not supposed to be whimpered, it's a new word a learned!) _and finally pulled out three Munny gems. She gave them to the man and got a hot dog in exchange.

She walked away, holding the steamy hot dog in hand. 

"Eh, Lady! Ya forgot yer pocket stuff!" she heard a voice yell. Without looking back, she waved her hand as if to say, "Keep it."

She bit into her hot dog and chewed fiercely. She was half-starved from not eating much yesterday. She traveled to the other stands and stopped, awe struck, in front of a jewelry and figurine stand.

There was a gorgeous necklace featured on a black velvet stand that glimmered proudly in the middle of all of the others. It was a thin strand of silver, delicate looking, with an equally delicate ring strung to it.

She completely forgot her hot dog and dropped it into a waste basket nearby. In a rush, she walked over to the stand and stared at the necklace. The ring was engraved with intertwined ovals. It sparkled, despite the dreariness of Traverse Town.

The merchant nodded at her. He was about in his upper forties. 

"That's a special necklace. It has to do with the Killmanian War, too, which is why I have it."

"Why is it special?" she asked, still stunned. 

"During the War, soldiers lived far away from family and friends. So, Ashton Melvnik, a young soldier, sent his lover a necklace with a little note. It said, "This is a love necklace. The intertwined ovals mean everlasting love. Always hold onto it and you'll have a piece of me with you, even if I leave this world." The idea appealed to everyone else, and a lot of the soldiers sent their loved ones necklaces like these, all different, but they all had the intertwined circles. It was said that when Ashton's wife was killed, she was holding the necklace and smiling."

Yuffie nodded vigorously. She remembered Ashton...he had helped her when she had been down that rainy night...she was in his debt. It was extraordinary that she had met and talked to a legendary man.

"That's so interesting!" Yuffie exclaimed. 

"Yes. But what is even more interesting is this is Ashton's necklace."

"Wow..."

"It's 2,563 Munny gems."

Yuffie's jaw dropped. How expensive! Her eyes were cast to her feet.

"Well...thanks for the story."

"You're not going to buy it, most likely someone else will take it if you don't."

She bit her lip. She did have the money, but she was saving it up so she could, maybe, one day move out of the hotel into her own apartment. But no, she couldn't blow it...

"No thanks," she said with a downhearted smile. The man scratched his head and shrugged.

"Suit yourself..."

Yuffie stuffed her hands into her pocket and walked away, rather reluctantly. 

"Yuffie! Yuffie...over here!" Aerith shouted through the crowd. She looked left and right and finally spotted Aerith grasping onto Cloud's arm, looking extremely happy and excited. 

Yuffie ran up to them with a smile on her face. 

"I forgot about the Festival! You guys never said anything to remind me."

"We thought you knew," Aerith replied. She smiled widely. "Let's go see the games in First District! Cloud and I were riding the rides in Third District but he got sick, so he wanted to see the games."

She glanced at Cloud with a grin. "Lookin' a little green in the face, actually, Cloud," Yuffie remarked. 

Cloud rolled his eyes and let go of Aerith's arm. 

"I told her I get sick on spinning rides."

They started walking forward to the door. She hesitated.

"But where's Squall?"

Cloud and Aerith exchanged glances. 

"We haven't seen him all day," Cloud answered. Aerith nodded and a piece of chestnut hair fell in front of her green eyes. She actually had her hair down today, released from its braided confines. She looked...well, radiant.

Yuffie put a hand on her hip. "Haven't seen him? And you didn't go look for him?"

They exchanged glances again and looked back at her. 

"What do you know that I don't know?" she asked. 

Aerith fingered her hair nervously. 

"Aerith, you can never tell a lie. Just tell me."

Cloud looked from Yuffie to Aerith and crossed his arms. "I knew she would spill...I knew it..."

"He told us he needed to think things out and deal with some things. And not to tell you, because you would go and find him," Aerith said with a sigh. She grabbed Yuffie's hand and started to pull her through the crowd.

Yuffie trailed behind, Aerith's grip on her hand squeezing her like iron. She was stronger than she thought. 

The games were splattered all over, video games near one corner, dart throws in another, and a whole bunch of other games spread out everywhere. Food was being served in the café and little children were running around everywhere.

"What should we play first?" Aerith asked in an excited voice.

"Oh dear God, and I was just recovering from the ache of last year's Festival, Aerith. You get too excited," Cloud moaned.

"I can't help it!" Aerith said in a strained voice. She was moving the trigger of a video game and clicking the little red button on top, trying to maneuver the little airship on the screen to the right direction. 

Yuffie giggled. "I never saw you at the Festival, last time, Aerith. I had to stay home because I had a cold."

Aerith's eyes were glazed over and all words from the outside world were blocked out. Cloud, meanwhile, had discovered the delights of ice-cream stands.

Yuffie fingered her belt and watched the two for a few moments longer. She pushed herself into a large crowd of people and hid herself from view. 

She had a weird feeling. She had to find Squall...but she didn't know why. It just seemed strange to her that he would disappear somewhere on such an exciting time. But then again...maybe the idea of so many people stressed him out. Yet...last year it seemed like he had enjoyed the excitement. 

A couple of people gave her stares as she shoved past them rudely. She stared back at them and ran through the crowds until she got to the alley. Maybe Squall was talking to Damien again...he was there last time.

With soft, quiet steps that belonged to none other than The Greatest Female Ninja Ever, she ducked behind the boxes and peeked over the top. She drooped in disappointment. Squall wasn't there.

"Squall...I mean Leon...where _are _you?" she whispered to herself. 

She noticed the opening of the Waterway was dark, and the bars were raised. She kicked off her shoes and socks, then carefully lowered herself into the knee high water. She trudged through the murky coldness that seemed to have gunk at the bottom that sucked at her toes.

She twisted her face into a look of disgust and walked through the water until it was chest high. It swished around her and echoed on the walls, announcing her presence. She stopped abruptly and listened for any noises.

A finger traced the back of her neck and made her hair rise. She whirled around as fast as she could in the thick water, expecting Squall.

A hand covered her mouth and cut off her shriek. The man held her in a tight grip. He pulled her head back onto his chest while still holding her mouth, but he did so with a tender touch.

Yuffie's eyes widened as her eyes adjusted to her surroundings better. She saw golden red hair and a lanky figure. And the strangest golden eyes...

He let go of her mouth and traced a finger down her arm. She was too frightened to say anything.

_Snap out of it! What am I doing?_

She threw her hand back and brought it down as hard as she could onto his cheek. With amazing reflexes, he grabbed her wrist an inch away from his face. 

"Not so fast," he whispered huskily into her ear.

"L-Let go of me..." she said in a whimper. 

"But I can't..."

Yuffie's heart was beating fast. Was he going to rape her? He sounded odd. Maybe he was going to rape her and then kill her. Her remains would sink to the bottom of the floor...be sucked into the murky slime of the Waterway...

"NO!" she shouted loudly. She threw her hand back, his guard down, and punched his face. He fell backwards into the water with a loud splash and angrily surfaced for air, a look of malevolent rage on his face.

She dove into the water and swam furiously to the dirt land covered in stones. Without making the mistake of looking behind her, she resurfaced and pulled herself onto the dirt. 

She gasped for air and wildly looked around. He was gone. Damien...it had to be him. He seemed so familiar to her...not just from her dream, but from somewhere else.

Her clothes clung to her skin and made her shiver. She wrapped her arms around herself and walked backward until she hit the wall. She sunk down to the floor, gripping herself. 

She leaned her head against the wall and heard a clank. She screamed and jumped to her feet.

"I'm not afraid of you...come out and we'll really fight!" she said in a shakier voice than she had hoped.

"...Yuffie..." 

"Leon?" she asked shrilly. Her head turned to the direction of his voice and spotted him in the opposite corner, his head lowered.

She walked over to him, each step she took allowing her to see him more clearly. 

He had claw marks all over his arms and face. His shirt was ripped in numerous places. A long gash was cut across his arm, leaking blood all over the floor.

She dropped onto her knees next to him.

"What happened to you?" 

"Nothing..."

"Nothing?!" she shrieked. "Stop lying!"

He didn't say anything. He took off his shirt and wrapped it onto his arm, bandaging the cut. Yuffie's eye was drawn to his chest, which rose and fell with his breath. She flushed and forced herself to look away.

He stood up slowly and picked up his Gunblade with his good hand. She stood up and tried to pull the Gunblade from him.

"No, you can't just get up and leave! Forget yesterday! I'm sorry for spying on you, okay? Sit down, right now!"

He started forward, about to step into the water back to the entrance. She darted forward and grabbed his arm. 

"Listen to me—" 

"I will _not _listen to you. _Stay out of this!_" he snapped.

Yuffie took an involuntary step backward and touched her cheek like she had been slapped. 

"Don't do this to me..." she whispered. He lowered himself into the water. He started forward at a slow pace, his face expressionless as the dirty water hit his cut. 

Her shoulders shook as she let her tears fall freely, something she hadn't allowed herself to do in front of anyone for years. 

"Squall! Come back here!" she shouted in a shaking voice. 

He didn't look back or acknowledge her presence. She pressed herself against a wall and lowered herself onto the dirt, crying softly into her arms.

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I am finally done! I really hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. I'm aiming for a lot of reviews, folks! By the way, I changed my name from "October Girl" to "October Breeze" and updated my profile. I'm not sure if it's been switched yet from when I last checked. 

Well give me your feedback!!!


	6. Broken Tears

Disclaimer: I only own Vanera.

Note: I'm back! I know I should update more, but I'm so lazy, even though I love this story. It just takes energy for me to make a new chapter on Microsoft Word. Well, READ AND REVIEW!

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_Fallen_

_Chapter 6: Broken Tears_

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Yuffie watched him go, her eyes full of painful tears. She watched his shadowed figure swim to the entrance until she could no longer see him anymore. She wiped her eyes and stood up wobbly. 

If Squall kept doing this to her; kept pushing her and hurting her, she didn't know when she would snap, but eventually, she would. Living around him in this state was making her depressed and no matter how hard she tried, he wouldn't open up to her.

She wearily walked into the water, ignoring the squishiness at the bottom of her feet, and started tracking herself into the water. Once she was in knee deep, she jumped over onto the water with a kind of belly-flop technique and started swimming to the opening as fast as she could. She had to talk to someone. 

Dripping wet and smelling of sewer water, she ran into Second District and up the set of stairs. Without a hint of hesitation, she entered Vanera's Armor and Weaponry shop. A little bell jingled on the doorknob. 

The weapons had a clean sheen to their silver plaited hilts and the armor, different assortments of links and leather looked great. Vanera was really keeping up with her shop. 

The whole shop was quiet. She walked down the isles, leaving wet foot prints behind her. The counter with the register at it was empty. It was possible Vanera had closed shop, but with all of the people swarming the streets? It just screamed business.

Just as Yuffie was about to leave, Vanera came through a door behind the counter, a disgusted look on her face. She was carrying a clipboard and a pen, writing scribbles down onto a sheet of paper. Must be taking inventory. 

Her silky auburn hair was let down to her back, a slight curl visible as it neared the ends of her hair. Her blue eyes gleamed like they always did, alive with a life of their own and a twinkle that wanted adventure and fun. When Yuffie first met her, she could have sworn Vanera was some kind of mischievous little devil despite her looks, until she got to know her to be a sweet, yet still partially demented girl. 

She looked around, sniffing the air. Her face just had a kind of 'What-the-hell-is-that-smell?' look on it. Yuffie grinned and came out from behind an isle. 

"Oh my God, Yuffie, what happened to you?" she screeched and dropped her clipboard onto the ground.

"What?" Yuffie asked. She looked down at her arms and clothes. She was scratched up badly, and her clothes were stained to hold the resemblance of the water in the Waterway. "O-Oh...nothing happened to me."

"Sure. What's wrong, Yuf?" 

Yuffie sighed and leaned against the counter, her head resting in her arms. 

"Everything," she murmured. 

A little off topic, Vanera said, "God, where have you been? You reek!" 

Yuffie rolled her eyes. "I was getting to that."

Vanera leaned against the counter and watched Yuffie's face, waiting for her to continue.

"Well...I can't take the way Squall fights with me. I try to be kind, and I want so badly—no _need _so badly to get along with him, I can't keep up this ongoing fight. I'm gonna freakin' snap, Vanera, I hate this!" she yelled loudly.

She bit her lip and burst into tears. 

"All I ever do is cry now! Cry, cry, and cry, I'm such a baby! I'm the worst ninja ever, damn it, who the hell do I think I am? I'm not the Greatest Female Ninja Ever, I'm just a pathetic little bitch!" she ranted hysterically through sobs. 

Yuffie collapsed onto the counter and beat it with her fists. She felt warm arms around her neck. She sobbed into Vanera's shoulder, choking on her breaths. 

Vanera stroked her hair and hugged her, trying to make her stop crying. 

"It's okay, Yuf, it's okay, just keep on crying," she said in a hushed voice. 

After ten minutes, Yuffie had regained her composure and was sitting on top of the counter with Vanera, wiping her eyes. 

Yuffie leaned her head against Vanera's shoulder.

"Don't tell anyone what I said, okay? Especially not Squall," Yuffie said. 

"Don't worry, I won't," Vanera answered. But she had different thoughts. Squall had to come to realize his mistake, and shape up. She was going to have a talk with him, and he was going to listen. For Yuffie. She couldn't do it herself anymore. 

~~~

Vanera went into the back room after Yuffie left and continued up the stairs to get to her bedroom. She lived in her store and ran it almost twenty-four seven. Who knows when someone would need to go to another world or get their weapon fixed?

She opened the door and entered her room. It was a decent size, slightly bigger than most, and had a hard wood floor, a single bed, a dresser, and a desk with a chair. On the other side of the room was a door with a bathroom.

She grabbed some clothes and took a quick shower, dressing into them and fixing her hair a bit carelessly, and not even bothering with make-up. Honestly, she didn't care about looking perfect or wearing dresses every day, she had found that most guys like girls who are a little carefree and ruffled.

She looked in the mirror briefly. Her auburn hair was down on her back and was covering her shoulders. Her blue eyes looked as usual. She was wearing a pair of cargo jeans, a belt slung across her waist. A sleeveless navy blue shirt that brought out her eyes rested on her upper top, a slice of her mid-riff visible. 

Satisfied, she grabbed her bag of knick-knacks and left the store, set on finding Squall. It would be just like finding a needle in a haystack. Thankfully he seemed to have a certain set of places to be. 

She walked quickly and checked the Waterway, Bell Tower, Gizmo Shop, Café, and wandered through the crowds of people there for the Festival and still couldn't find him. 

As a last resort, she looked into the hotel Green Room. He was sitting on the bed, still tending to his wounds. 

Vanera crept into the room and closed the door behind her. Squall looked up. 

"What is it that you want?" he asked with an annoyed tone. 

"We need to talk."

"No, actually we don't."

"Yes we do. It's about Yuffie."

She took a seat next to him. He kept on wrapping a bandage around his upper arm, but then finally said, "What about her?"

"You're ruining her, Squall. You can't keep pushing her and hurting her feelings. She has been really sensitive lately and..." she trailed off, wondering if she should tell him about her crying. But Yuffie told her not to. 

She shook her head. "Never mind. It's not important. But she needs you, now, Squall. She's obviously going through some kind of emotional transition, and you're not helping her."

He kept his face straight. Something that annoyed her very much. She showed her emotions easily, and she thought it was abnormal at how he could keep such an emotionless face.

"Hey Squall?" she asked, a hint of laughter in her voice. He turned to look at her, a bemused expression on his face. 

A smile spread across her face as she hugged him firmly, something no one but Yuffie had dared to do. For once not being a limp rag doll, he responded to her hug. Sort of. 

She pulled away and patted his arms. "Think about what I said." 

"Yeah...whatever. See you later." 

"See ya!" she called out. 

_Well, that went better than I thought it would, _she thought to herself. _Hopefully things will get better..._

~~~

Yuffie left the shop and wandered down the steps. It was growing later outside, and everyone was leaving Second District to get to the rides and the games. The stands were closing up for the next day ahead. 

She walked past the darkened alley door and saw something move out of the corner of her eye. She paused for a moment and tried to see beyond the darkness. Something moved again.

She took a step forward and narrowed her eyes in an attempt to see well. Nothing. She turned around and started to walk when she felt a hand on her shoulder. 

A gasp was ripped out of her throat as she was pulled into the dark alley. Her eyes were wide with fear. Someone was keeping a firm grip on her shoulder, and was breathing heavily.

She squirmed and started to kick with her feet, trying to find a sensitive spot between the legs. She could easily tell this was a man by the breathing and roughness of the hands. 

Yuffie let out a sharp, high-pitched scream, hoping someone would hear her. A hand clamped down on her mouth. She quickly bit into the hand and tasted blood in her mouth. 

"Ah!" said the man. She started gagging on the metallic blood in her mouth that definitely did not belong to her. 

With this distraction, she kicked him as hard as she could then pushed him backwards. There was a thump then a loud groan. 

Yuffie made a dash for the door.

"Can't get away from me that fast, Yuffie," said the familiar, husky voice from the Waterway. 

He grabbed her ankle and she fell over a few feet from the door. She hit the concrete, unguarded, and pain hit her body like a thousand needles.

She couldn't move. She was paralyzed by fear. 

Damien stood up and knelt down next to her. Her heart raced and her breaths were in short gasps. She felt a hand traveling from her neck, down to her back, and reach...

She jolted out of the trance like state and pushed herself away from him. But he was on her quickly enough, and held her down roughly.

"Stop it, Yuffie. Stop running from me. I'm safe. Perfectly..." he said and paused to trace a little circle on her chest, "...safe."

She closed her eyes and pushed down the urge to puke. 

"Leave me alone," she whimpered weakly. 

He lowered his face close to hers, breathing on her neck. "Hush, Yuffie...shh..."

"How do you know my name?" she asked with a tremor in her voice.

"You don't remember me? But...you begged Squallie so. You just had to have me...don't you remember?" he purred. 

She almost laughed out loud at the thought. It seemed like he was saying he was that mysterious cat. 

"Meow..." he whispered into her ear. 

"No! Stop it!"

"I have something for you..." 

He pulled something out of his back pocket. It was a leather box, and it looked old and cracked. He opened it. It was a silver necklace...it glittered radiantly, and had a ring at the end. Intertwined circles were engraved with perfection.

"The love ring..." he whispered. She could even see it in the dimness of the alley. His eyes flashed with a feral quality that only belonged to a cat.

"It means nothing coming from you," she said bitterly.

He continued speaking as if she had said nothing. "I saw the longing on your face to have it, and I knew I must give it to you as a symbol of my love. I knew you would never indulge yourself to buy the ring."

"You don't even know me."

"We'll get to know each other. Enough talk."

He slowly pulled out the necklace from the box with shaking hands and strung it around her neck. She felt a tear slip down her cheek. All of her energy had evaporated. She couldn't do anything to stop him.

With a powerful lust, he took off her shirt and continued with her shorts. Her eyes grew blank and faced toward the open sky. Tears slipped down her cheeks without emotion attached to them. She felt...empty. 

Her lips parted and she took in deep breaths as he continued. Tears wet her whole face...an emotionless face. 

Her hands curled and uncurled, feeling numb everywhere and only feeling the pressure of Damien. Why wasn't she screaming? Why couldn't she feel?

It seemed like an eternity passed. She slipped in and out of consciousness; her thoughts ran across her mind slowly. 

She heard footsteps, and felt the pressure being lifted off of her body. She watched without fully registering as Damien skittered into the Waterway. 

~~~

Squall walked into the alley, looking for Yuffie. After Vanera came and went, Aerith had found him and said that she couldn't find Yuffie anywhere. That she had left them at Third District and she hadn't returned. 

He was sure she was fine. And he didn't really feel like looking for her and talking to her, either. 

It was dark in the alley; only a little bit of light came through from the hotel rooms. He saw a dark, lifeless figure laying on the ground, and what looked like clothes scattered around it. He approached cautiously.

It was Yuffie. She was on the ground, scratched, bruised, and bleeding. She was completely naked and limp. Tears were streaming down her cheeks, falling out on by one, and her eyes held a blankness he had never seen.

And for the first time that he could ever remember, Squall Leonheart was scared.

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Wow. I am so cruel. But you all knew it was going to happen. I know this is a cliffy, but it was a good sentence to end it with. 

So, give me your reaction! Was this too inappropriate for a PG-13 rating? I'm not sure...but I really wouldn't want to raise it to R. 

Oh, and I tried to finish this fast. It might be a little shabby because I spent about forty-five minutes on it, and yes, I KNOW it's short. 


	7. Final Meeting

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Square and Disney, except for a handful. 

Note: It's me again! Okay...I think I must have a huge addiction to reviews. No, I _know that_ I do. So review! Anyway, I have had strong writing urges lately and I'm going to spend every waking minute trying to finish this story so I can make more. I have grown attached to this story, though. Remember, R&R! It's every author's favorite word on this website.

To Cat of Darkness: No, it's not from "Bring Me to Life," although that is a great story, and one of my favorites. I try to make my stories as original as I can, and I have never really "copied" off of anyone, even if some of my writing is of the same idea as others. It's impossible to have every single thing different. As you can see, I'm _very _offended when it comes to matters like these. I do, in every way, appreciate your reviews and hearing your opinions, so don't let this discourage you. I'm not trying to be mean, though.

To Everyone: I appreciate everyone who reviewed to my stories for the past six chapters! They really mean a lot to me, especially a certain few. I won't name everyone, because I might miss someone, but I love you guys! To all of those who bothered to read and not to review...shame on you! 

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_Fallen_

_Chapter 7: Final Meeting_

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Squall was scared. 

Anyone who knew him knew him for his cool and his rock hard emotions. He tried to keep up that reputation and pushed down any emotions. You could do your job better that way if you didn't have emotional attachment. But there was no way he could stop it this time.

He dropped down next to her. She blinked, but didn't seem to see him. She looked...empty. 

"Yuffie..." he said slowly. Had she been raped? "Yuffie...look at me."

She ignored him, but he could see her fingers curl a centimeter. Her tears stopped coming, except for one single tear that rolled down her cheek. 

"Yuffie," he pleaded, "Please, Yuffie, look at me!" 

He ran a hand through his dark hair that fell into his blue eyes. He directed her face to look toward his, but she kept her eyes averted. 

Finally, as if it took as much energy as she had, she looked up at him. He felt a sharp pang in his chest. Her eyes...they were...sucked of life. This isn't Yuffie. At least, not the Yuffie from a few days ago. 

He noticed the ring hanging around her neck. Carefully, he picked it up and unsnapped it from her neck and looked at it. Yuffie never wore this before. 

Almost as soon as the ring touched his fingers, he knew what had happened. 

In anger, he threw the ring into the water of the Waterway and took off his jacket and wrapped it around Yuffie. She made a whimper-like sound and stared at him with her big, brown orbs of sadness. 

He picked her up carefully, one arm under her knees and another around her back. Her hand escaped the jacket that covered her and fell limply, just hanging in the air. Her head rested against Squall's chest. He feared that if it weren't, she would let it fall back, unsupported. 

As inconspicuously as he could, he carried her to the hotel, which wasn't far away. The night air felt extra chilly out, being November 18. Only two days away from Yuffie's birthday. 

He looked down at Yuffie's face. Her eyes were open, still, but she hadn't seemed to snap out of her trance. He just hoped to God she didn't start to cry again. It looked so...wrong. Her, crying, especially when the tears seemed so detached. 

Squall looked back up and noticed Aerith staring out the hotel window, peering through the blinds, the soft glow from the lights in the hotel coming outward. She must not have seen him yet. 

He passed the window, but Aerith wasn't there to see. She was already out of the hotel, running toward him as fast as her feet could take her, her long auburn braid flying behind her. 

"Oh, Leon, what happened?!" she said in a soft breath. She narrowed her eyes in concern and touched Yuffie's cheek. "What's wrong with her?" 

His eyes flashed. "I don't know if I should suggest it...I might be wrong." 

But he knew he wasn't wrong. It had been Damien who raped Yuffie. He knew right after he saw the chain and ring around her neck. It was a long story. 

Aerith grabbed his shoulders, tears in her eyes. 

In hysterics, she said, "Squall, Squall! Why is she bleeding down there? Why are there handprints all over her? And those," she said, referring to purplish marks all over her neck and chest. "Squall...where is her clothing?"

He looked at Yuffie, then at Aerith. He didn't mind that Aerith had slipped and said "Squall" and not "Leon." 

Cloud came out of the hotel, eyeing the scene with a stunned look. He came over to them, took one look at Yuffie, and had an expression on his face. The kind where you realize what must have happened...but you don't want to accept it. 

Aerith turned around and gripped Cloud's shirt, throwing herself into his arms. He put his arms around her uncertainly, still a bit unclear on what was happening. 

"C'mon, Sq...uh, Leon. Let's get Yuffie inside," he said into Aerith's hair. He led her inside, and Squall trailed behind. His arms felt like they were ready to snap off if he had to carry her one more second. 

He brought her into the Green Room and laid her down on the bed. He racked his hands through his hair and walked over to the balcony, his arms crossed over his chest. Aerith had taken control of herself and sat next to Yuffie on the bed, willing her to say something. 

Cloud stood behind her, looking down with a worried expression. 

"Yuffie," Aerith whispered in a comforting voice. "Look at me. I'm telling you right now. Look at me," commanded the older girl. 

Yuffie barely turned her head and stared right through Aerith. 

Aerith bit her lip and put her warm hand on Yuffie's cheek and the other squeezed Yuffie's hand. They were ice cold.

There was no response. Aerith adjusted the jacket around her a little more and wrapped her arms around her in a long embrace. 

When she finally let go, she said, "I think Yuffie is in shock. Leon...what happened, exactly?"

He spared a glance over in her direction, his arms still crossed. 

"I went looking for her when you told me. I came into the alley and saw a dark figure on the ground. It was Yuffie. She was all banged and bruised and her clothes were everywhere. She didn't respond to me. I...I didn't know what to do," he answered in a very long detailed way for him.

Aerith nodded, and then said with a strain on her voice, "Was she...violated?"

"How should I know? I wasn't there..." he replied crossly. He was angry. Damien was getting old. It didn't bother him to be after him, but when he..._hurt _Yuffie, it was different. He wouldn't get away with it. 

He glanced down the balcony to where he found Yuffie. He thought that all that time ago at Hollow Bastion...well, he thought Damien was gone. How wrong he had been. 

"Cloud, help me give Yuffie a bath. She needs one," Aerith said in a firm voice. She wrapped one arm around Yuffie. Cloud obeyed and followed her lead. They carried her into the bathroom, her feet dragging across the floor. 

Aerith closed the door and Cloud walked over to Squall. 

He opened his mouth to say something when he was cut off by a loud shrieking scream. Both men, startled, ran to the bathroom door. There was splashing sounds and incoherent words coming from inside. 

"Aerith, what's going on?" Cloud asked. 

"Someone help me!" Aerith yelled. 

Cloud swung the door open and went inside. Squall closed the door behind him and stood next to Cloud. Aerith was soaked, trying to hold Yuffie down. She was in the bathtub, only partially filled, screaming and crying, her arms flailing around like she was falling through the sky.

"Help me hold her down!" Aerith yelled above the screaming. Cloud knelt next to her and grabbed Yuffie's shoulders. For a moment, it seemed like she couldn't recognize him, but something passed behind her eyes and she was out of the bathtub, naked and wet, sobbing into his shirt. 

Blushing furiously, Aerith grabbed a towel and wrapped it around Yuffie. Squall diverted his eyes from looking past her face and watched painfully as she continued to cry. Aerith rubbed her back and made comforting noises. 

Yuffie stopped crying and wiped at her eyes. She looked at Squall and a light pink shade crossed her cheeks. She wrapped the towel around herself and he realized she was visibly shaking. 

Aerith helped her up and into the bathtub, and gave Cloud and Squall a look. They left the room. 

"I wonder if the water jolted her out of whatever that trance she was in," Cloud said aloud. Squall shrugged and acted like nothing happened, but in truth, he was shaken. He wasn't used to seeing people start screaming out of no where. 

He covered himself efficiently enough. He leaned against the wall, unknowing of what to do. Cloud sat on the couch and rested his elbows on his knees.

Aerith and Yuffie emerged from the bathroom. Both Yuffie and Aerith's eyes were red and puffy from crying. 

Yuffie kept her eyes diverted from Squall's and stared at the floor. He followed her with his eyes until she reached the bed and collapsed onto it in a heap.

Aerith wiped her eyes and took Cloud's hand. He squeezed hers reassuringly.

"Let Yuffie rest, and we'll question her tomorrow...she's not well," Aerith said quietly to Squall. He gave a single nod and walked into the bathroom for a shower, not waiting to see them out.

He un-bandaged his arm and took a quick shower, brushed his teeth, and dressed into a pair of pants and a white T-shirt. 

He climbed into bed and turned off the light. Yuffie was on her side, facing him. Her eyes were closed and her short black hair fell into her eyes. She smelled of roses from the soap, but not even the soap could wash away the bruises. 

He closed his eyes and had his back to her. He fell into a light sleep and didn't wake until morning. 

~~~

Yuffie opened her eyes slowly, thinking that there would be light streaming through the windows and the familiar sound of people all around her like at Hollow Bastion. But she was at Traverse Town. When was the last time she woke up thinking she was still there?

She closed her eyes again as she felt excruciating pain. And the memories of last night flew across her head in a painful display. Hesitantly, she pulled her shorts outward from her stomach and looked down. She almost gagged at the sight of her battered thighs and the handprint marks all over her where..._he _had grabbed her so roughly.

Her head dropped. She was no longer a virgin. She had carried herself highly above her friends that she had been a virgin, and saving herself for marriage. Now, _he _had gone and ruined that. She pushed tears out of her eyes and wobbly stood up. 

She ran into the bathroom and puked. She felt so wrong. She moaned and cleaned herself up and dressed in a pair of hip-hugging jeans and a lime green turtleneck sweater. It was getting chillier outside, and she also wanted to cover up her bruises and hickey marks.

Yuffie took a deep breath and walked out into Second District. It was the next day of the Festival. The merchants were still selling, and most likely, all of the games and rides were still up, too. Everything seemed so normal. 

She walked past the shops. She stuffed her cold hands into her pockets and sighed. 

"Yuffie!" Vanera yelled. 

Yuffie looked behind her. Vanera was running to catch up to her. 

"Hi..." Yuffie said in a soft voice. 

Vanera grinned. "Hey, I thought that was you. Finally ditched those shorts, huh?"

She nodded and managed a smile. "Yep..."

"What's wrong? Don't tell me you're still mooning over Squall."

"No."

"Then wha..." she trailed off when she saw Yuffie's arm. She had pulled up her sleeves and her wrists were showing. There was a circular bruise on it, like someone had clasped it with strength. Vanera looked up at Yuffie's face, stunned, and noticed her scratches.

"What happened to you?" Vanera asked slowly. She looked like she was choosing her words carefully.

"N-nothing," Yuffie replied. She leaned against the railing by the stores. 

"That's it, that Squall—" was all Yuffie heard. Vanera was running down to the crowd, apparently looking for Squall.

"Oh my God," Yuffie groaned. She put a hand on her forehead and stood up wearily. 

She reluctantly followed Vanera, trailing behind her by about five feet. 

"Vanera, wait up! I need to tell you something!" 

They were separated by the crowd. Yuffie stood on her toes. Vanera had found Squall, and she was talking to him with a look of attitude on her face. 

Yuffie pushed through the crowd and caught up with them. She was breathing heavily.

Vanera had stopped in front of the alley doorway. She walked inside. Yuffie was struck with a pang of fear. Could she go in there? But what was Vanera doing? Looking for Squall?

She timidly walked inside. She felt her heart beating in her chest, faster than she had ever felt it. 

It was lighter out, and she could see much better than before. She saw Vanera hiding behind some boxes. She walked closer to her, wondering what she was doing. 

Vanera took Yuffie's hand and pulled her down. She had a finger to her lips, and a frightened expression on her face. 

Vanera mouthed, "Look," and pointed above the boxes.

Confused, she looked into the darkness. Squall and Damien were standing by each other. 

Understanding what could happen, she darted under the boxes and clutched her chest. What if someone was killed? What was happening here? 

"Like what happened to little Yuffie, Squallie? She's a gorgeous one."

"Shut up."

"I bet I gave her the time of her life. I knew that hurting her would hurt you, and I think I was right," Damien said with a chuckle.

There was no reply. 

"What's wrong Squallie? Cat got your tongue?"

"Curiosity killed the cat," said a low, angry response.

"Enough with these cat cracks."

"Let's do it, then."

Yuffie started to jump out from behind the boxes. Vanera grabbed her ankle and shook her head quickly.

Yuffie ignored her and pulled away. 

"Wait!" she screeched before they could do anything.

"Ahh...look at this!" Damien said. He walked over to Yuffie and put a hand on her thigh. 

"Don't you dare touch me," she growled. She punched him backwards. 

"Got a chick defending you now?" Damien taunted behind his hand holding a bloody nose. 

"Stay out of this!" Squall yelled. 

"No! This is my fight to," Yuffie protested.

Vanera came out from the shadows, holding a long sword. "And mine."

"Take her back to the hotel, Vanera!"

"Yuffie can fight, and so can I. I have been into more fights than you can count."

Damien started laughing. "Oh, this is great. This is just special. You're going to have two girls fighting with you?"

"Come on. Just you and me, you bastard."

Damien charged at him. Squall lifted up his Gunblade above his head and held it in front of him. He ran right into the blade. 

Slowly, he looked down into his stomach and gasped. 

"Oh...!" Yuffie buried her face into Vanera's hair. She couldn't see that...that was...horrifying. 

Squall dropped his Gunblade and took a step back. Damien collapsed onto the ground, clutching his wounded stomach. 

"Squall..." he whispered. "I'm sorry."

"No, NO!" Yuffie shouted. Vanera hugged her and turned away from Damien's body. Squall retrieved his Gunblade and started walking out of the alley. 

Yuffie pulled away from Vanera and ran after him. He turned around and faced her. She punched his chest with her hands.

"How could you kill him? And then walk away? How could you kill somebody? Look, he's dead, he's dead!" she sobbed.

He shook his head. "I didn't kill him. He killed himself."

"No, no, no! How...how could you..." 

She crossed her arms and took a step away from him. "You're a murderer." 

"Believe what you want."

He continued walking and left the alley. Yuffie ran after him. Vanera took her hand and stopped her.

"Yuffie...let him go." 

Yuffie turned around and faced her, despair and grief visible all over her face. Vanera wrapped an arm around her. Death was nothing new to her. It was something she accepted would happen to everyone. She had seen and been the cause of many deaths. And she was ashamed of all of this, of not being upset like Yuffie.

"Let's go home."

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I'm done! Wow, I think that was the quickest time span between chapters that I've ever had. Only a day or two, I think.

Anyway, I did it. I killed Meow/Damien. And I PROMISE that in the next chapter I will explain EVERYTHING. Just so you all know...I'm about to end the story. But if I get enough reviews and if everyone begs, then I'll make a sequel! Hopefully everyone wants a sequel! 


	8. Yuffie's Birthday

I am just so bored this week! You can tell because I've been writing a lot lately. How did everyone like the last chapter? I felt so bad about Damien. I did create him, after all. But then I started to hate him. Oh well. Like I said before, the story is coming to a slow close, and I haven't made enough Squffie! If there is a sequel, I will have a lot of it, and _maybe _a few lemons here and there. I have an idea for another story, so when this one is done, be expecting another one from me. By the way, the story "Look to Tomorrow" is pretty good for a real angst-like Squffie, if anyone would like to read it. It's by PingPong, but I don't remember the numbers at the back of her name. 

______________________________________________________________________________

_Fallen_

_Chapter 8: _

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Yuffie sat at the table in her hotel bedroom, nervously reading a magazine. She was waiting for Squall to come back. She desperately needed to talk to him. She leaned back in her chair and flipped another page of the magazine, watching the door out of the corner of her eye.

She turned her head slowly and glanced out the balcony doors. Damien's body might be laying there. She shuddered and quickly turned back to her magazine, unable to think about something so utterly horrible.

It was true she hated him; it was no secret. But...to see a person die like that...to run into an open blade...it was horrible. She knew she shouldn't blame Squall, Damien, technically, had run into it and killed himself, like Squall said. But she needed someone to blame.

She glanced up when she heard the lock click and the doorknob turn. The door opened and Squall stepped into the room. 

Yuffie bit her lip and watched him walk into the bathroom. She heard the shower turn on, and then heard the sink running when he brushed his teeth. He came out, dressed in a white T-shirt and a pair of sleeping pants. 

"Leon...can I talk to you?" she asked softly. She seemed to be talking quieter more than usual.

"What is it?" 

"Please, I just need to talk about what happened tonight. Come sit at the table with me."

He sighed and sat down across from her. 

"Leon...I'm sorry for blaming you for his death. I just thought that...maybe...well I think I needed reassurance. He did run into your blade, and maybe you didn't purposefully kill him."

He crossed his arms. He figured what was coming next.

"What is between you two?"

"A past. We share a past."

"At Hollow Bastion? Because I remember him being there."

"You should. He and his family lived in the poorer section of Hollow Bastion, but he was with me often."

"And?"

"What else is there to say?"

"What happened?"

"Damien told you he was your Meow right?"

"Umm..." she said uncertainly. She vaguely remembered it, but she didn't believe it.

"He could transform into a cat since he was a baby. And ever since he could walk he used it to take advantage of people. He would steal things from stores for his family. And I helped him."

"Y-You did?" she gulped.

"Yeah. It wasn't a big deal, but after awhile, he started taking more risks and started to nearly expose himself. So I stopped hanging out with him."

"I remember," Yuffie whispered. She remembered her dream when Squall was trying to convince Damien to stop doing...whatever he was doing at the time. Stealing.

"Remember what?"

"I remember you and Damien from a dream when I was little. You were both in a bar and you were warning him about that. Then you kind of did something with your blade, it's a little fuzzy, but I remember you leaving after that."

"I remember, too. He was starting to annoy me with his actions so I warned him, but he got defensive. I didn't hurt him, I just threatened him."

"Well...what else?"

He sighed. "He got older and he joined a group of people called "The Lectus." It means "The Chosen One in Latin, or something. They killed powerful men so they could get stronger. Damien's boss told him to kill me and do the job right, or else he would kill Damien and then have to kill me."

"Oh, wow."

"He confronted me one day and pulled out a knife. I heard about what he was going to do, so I knocked him out. I didn't want to kill him. I left after that. From what I heard, the boss's men got him, but obviously not. He sent me a letter after that."

"I see...but what about when you were knocked out and I first saw the cat?"

"Damien found me and he challenged to fight me. He knocked me out and I broke his arm."

"And to think that I actually...wanted to keep him," Yuffie said with a sigh. "I understand now why you didn't let me keep him, and...I don't mind."

She looked at Squall expectantly, but he said nothing. She cast her eyes to her hands and sighed. She was hoping they would be able to talk more. She didn't have many good friends that she could really talk to and trust. Even though she knew he hated her, she could trust him. That was important to her.

He left the table and went into the bathroom. She heard the squeak of the knobs turning then the splash as the water hit the porcelain tub. 

She stood up and rubbed her hands together. It was growing chillier outside by the second, it seemed. She walked towards the balcony doors and pulled them shut, avoiding looking down at the body. She hoped that Squall came back and took it away. 

Yuffie turned off the lights and crawled into bed. The day had passed by so quickly, and tomorrow was her birthday, November 20. She didn't really want to turn eighteen. She had been waiting for that day for her whole life, when she could be declared an adult. Now, all she wanted was to stay a kid and be allowed to cry into her pillow at night and hug a stuffed animal. 

She stared up at the ceiling, unable to rid herself of Damien's face. He had looked so utterly pathetic when he ran into the blade, so sorrowful. She never wanted to see someone die right in front of her eyes ever again. She blinked back tears and turned on her side to fall asleep. 

~~~

Yuffie opened her eyes slowly and stretched. She sat up in bed groggily and felt something fall onto her lap. It was a lavender envelope that smelled like Aerith's perfume. 

She opened the envelope and pulled out the card. It was decorated with a soft color palette, and had ivy and roses stretched around the words. It said,

_A day of peace and hope on your birthday._

She opened up the inside carefully and read the words.

_Another year you have grown older, another year of maturity, strength, and happiness.__ Another year that I can treasure our special friendship and love you with all of my heart. Happy birthday. _

_Aerith _

Yuffie smiled and closed the card. It was just the type of card she was expecting from Aerith. She stumbled out of bed; her spirits lifted, and set it up on the desk. She picked up her birthday outfit she had laid across the couch the night before and walked into the bathroom.

She took a shower slowly, enjoying the feel of the hot water running down her back and stomach. She got out and dried off and blow-dried her raven black hair. 

She held out her outfit. It was a black, billowy skirt that came mid-thigh. It felt smooth and satiny on her legs and made her look older, more mature. Her top was a white camisole and over it, blue see-through blouse. 

She slipped into it and ran a brush through her hair. She took a step back and looked at herself in the mirror. She didn't look like her Yuffie anymore...she looked like an older, more mature Yuffie. 

She smiled with satisfaction. This was her day, and older or not, she would make the best of it. 

She pranced out of the hotel room and down the hall where she knew Aerith would be. She knocked once on the Red Room door and stepped inside. Aerith was sitting on the bed, looking at pictures. 

She glanced up when Yuffie walked in. She hopped off the bed and hugged Yuffie.

"Happy birthday! Did you get my card?" she asked eagerly. Her eyes were shining.

"Yes, and I loved it," she replied. 

"You look nice," Aerith commented. 

"Thanks."

"I have a present for you, but you can't open it now."

Yuffie sighed and gave a fake pout. "Why not?"

"Because we have to wait until we go out for your birthday, silly!" 

"We're going out?"

"Of course we are. We're not going to just stay home and do nothing."

Yuffie grinned. "Cool. When are we going?" 

"Around four-thirty, for dinner. Make sure you're ready."

"Okay...who's coming?"

"Cloud, Leon, Vanera, Cid, you, and I." 

Yuffie smiled and gave a nod. "I'll be ready!" 

~~~ 

Everyone who said would come to the party dinner arrived with gifts and balloons. They all sat around a large, circular table, talking and laughing with each other. 

Yuffie smiled. This was turning out to be one of the best birthday parties she had ever had.

"Oh, the food's coming!" someone said. The waiter was carrying large trays of food. He dished out the plates and everyone started to eat. Yuffie took a delicate bite of her food and then a sip of ice water. 

When everyone was finished, Aerith raised her glass into the air and shouted above the chatter, "Quiet, everyone!"

Everyone hushed down and looked at her. 

"I would like to make a toast to Yuffie. Yuffie, you have always been there for us and had a happy smile on your face doing it. We all love you, and we all wish you a happy birthday!" 

They raised their glasses and shook their heads. Yuffie smiled sincerely and brushed a few tears out of her eyes. Was it just her, or was she turning into a sentimental, mushy kind of girl?

"Presents! Presents!" someone yelled. 

Aerith thrust a few presents into Yuffie's arms. "Go on, open them!"

Yuffie took them, surprised, and proceeded to open one. It was wrapped in shiny pink foil. Inside was a box that felt like it held clothing. 

She opened the box that said, "From Aerith," and looked inside. She smiled. It was a pink dress, but it wasn't as bad as the ones Aerith wore. On top of it, there was a dried out bouquet of violets. 

"Oh, thanks, Aerith!" Yuffie said sincerely. She just wasn't sure if she would ever wear it.

Another box was pushed into her hands, from Vanera. She opened it quickly with a smile. It was a set of shiny, sharp star-shaped shurikens of much finer materials than her old ones. She thanked her and continued to open presents.

A weapon cleaner from Cloud, a bunch of Munny gems from Cid, and finally, a new headband from Leon. 

She thanked everyone gratefully for their gifts, and they left the table one by one. Aerith paid for the check and she, Aerith, Cloud. And Leon left the restaurant.

Yuffie ran outside ahead of everyone else and twirled around. It was snowing, the first snow, on her birthday! The fluffy, big flakes fell onto her skin and clothes and slowly melted. They leisurely twirled down from the sky in a display of white.

She turned back to look at Aerith and Cloud. Aerith was smiling as well. 

"Wow, it's finally snowing! It took long enough!" Aerith said softly. Cloud came up to her and took her hand and started dragging her forward, wanting to be alone. Aerith cast her an apologetic look and allowed herself to be dragged forward.

Yuffie sighed and continued walking the path back to the hotel. She never saw this path before, it was outside of First District in the woods where she hardly ever went. (A/N: I know it's not true but I had to make it! Hehe...) 

The dirt path was set far behind First District, and already had a light layer of snow covering it. Small oriental lanterns lit the path up. 

She felt someone walk up behind her. She turned around, partially frightened then relaxed.

"Squall...you scared me."

She walked slower to keep up with his leisurely pace. 

"Having fun?" he asked and stuffed his hands into his pockets.

"Can't you tell?" she asked. She looked up at him and smiled. 

"Yeah..." 

"I am having fun...this has been one of the happiest days I've had in awhile."

They walked together on the sidewalk in silence. Yuffie didn't really know what to say; she was just happy they could walk together without fighting.

She noticed the doors of First District up ahead. She paced up and reached the doors. 

"Yuffie, wait..." Squall said.

"Huh?" she asked. 

She turned around and stared up into his face. His deep, azure eyes were staring back at her. 

"I have another present for you."

Before she could react, she felt Squall's lips brush against hers. She felt herself intake a sharp breath of air. 

"W-what are you doing?" she murmured, caught up in his eyes. Her cheeks held a pink tinge that was not the cause of the coldness. 

She felt dizziness overtake her. She grabbed onto his sleeve to steady herself and was surprised by the intensity of one kiss.

Her heart was racing and her legs felt wobbly...it was just like how everyone described a kiss to be.

"Was that your first kiss?" he asked with an amused grin. 

"N-no..." she lied. 

"Liar."

"I know..." she said with a sigh. 

He kissed her again, only harder and longer this time. She broke off the kiss, breathless and in need for air. She grinned up at him and threw her arms around him in an embrace. 

"So...does this mean you like me?" she asked. 

"I wouldn't kiss you if I didn't."

"I like you, too." 

She let go of him and pushed open the doors to get into First District. The Festival was all closed up, the three days of their stay over. 

She grabbed his arm and started running to the hotel, eager to get inside, out of the cold, and tell Aerith about her kiss. 

He was running behind her, trying to keep up. 

"Come on, aren't you coming?" she yelled over her shoulder. She felt light-hearted and at ease with her life, and felt the wounds of the past days closing over. She felt...for the first time...truly happy.

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I hated, hated, hated this chapter! But I had to get some fluff in there. I wish I just would have written it better. Oh well...what's done is done. Did everyone like it? I'm not sure if I should keep this the last chapter or if I should write a follow up. I'm not sure if I'll write a sequel either...oh well. Now, review please! 


	9. Epilogue

_This is my next chapter for Fallen, maybe my last. I don't know yet. I'm still thinking about a sequel. Anyway, this message is to Regno Cuore:_

_OH-MY-GOSH! I forgot to explain the part about the necklace, didn't I? I knew I was forgetting something. Ugh...this kind of stuff always happens to me. Good thing you told me! For the people who really, really DO like this story, thank Regno Cuore for telling me! I might now have written this otherwise! ^-^_

_And I sincerely, sincerely, sincerely thank everyone who reviewed. Sincerely. I can't say that enough. You all made me so happy with your reviews! That's why I now review every story I read, because reviews are an author's addiction. Lookie! I even made you all a poem:_

_Roses are red...and yellow...and purple...and pink..._

_Violets are blue...wait, I mean purple...whoever thought blue,_

_Reviews are good,_

_And you're real swell! _

_It was beautiful, wasn't it? Come on now, don't you feel all warm and fuzzy inside? I feel a tear coming on...*tear*_

_Okay...I went a little overboard. Slap me next time I do this. By the way, it's five in the morning and I haven't gone to bed yet, so if this chapter is a little funny, it was my half-asleep self._

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_Fallen_

_Chapter 9:_

________________________________________________________________________________________

Yuffie walked along the edge of the Waterway near the secret entrance, gripping Squall's arm in case she fell in. The water which used to look dirty and reek of sewer water was now cleaned and clear, a much more refreshing sight than before. 

She sat down on the edge and put her bare feet into the water. It was summer time again in the hot month of July. Eight months since Squall first kissed her, and since Damien disappeared from their lives. 

Squall stood next to her and sat down by her. She dipped a finger into the water and moved it around, studying the ripples. A lot had happened since then. Cid had found himself a girlfriend, one his age. Cloud asked Aerith to marry him, and she accepted. Two months after they got married and went on their honeymoon. They came back with a tropical tan, and they were as in love as ever.

Someone even invented a way to communicate with people on other worlds. She had spoken to Kairi, and she said that Sora had found her again, and that Riku was safe on the island. She was overjoyed with the news. But it made her wonder how Sora got through the barriers, but then again, Sora could do almost anything.

Yuffie took her finger out of the water and wrapped her arms around Squall's waist, leaning against him. 

"What are you thinking about?" she asked him lazily. The hot was affecting her speaking and her ability to move around quickly. Funny how the heat could slow everything down. 

"I'm not really thinking about anything," he replied.

She gave a little half smile. "Tell me."

"I'm just happy, I guess."

Yuffie looked up into his face. "I'm happy, too."

She kissed his jaw and stood up. "Okay, let's go inside, now. It should be cooler."

The water looked welcoming, so she stepped down into it and felt a sharp pain in her foot. She gasped and sat back down next to Squall, gripping her foot. 

"There's something in there," she said through gritted teeth.

"You okay?" Squall asked. He looked in the water and noticed something glinting. He picked it up and pulled it out of the water. When Yuffie saw what it is she took in a sharp breath.

"I-It's that love necklace," she managed to say. She took it out of his hands and examined it. "Where did this come from?"

"It never moved. I threw it in there on...that night." 

"You told me that you knew what happened because of the necklace I was wearing," she said as a question, wanting an answer back. 

Squall's face grew blank and stiff. She knew how uncomfortable he got whenever Damien was mentioned, but he _was _a part of their past, and your past makes up your present. 

"Damien was always strange, Yuf. He was almost obsessive compulsive. All of the girls he was ever with, he made them wear a necklace like this. I never really figured it out," he said coldly. He thrust it back into the water. "Someone else can find it here. It's probably worth something."

Yuffie shuddered. For some reason, the necklace just lying in the pool of water was disturbing. 

"Come on, let's go," Yuffie urged. She pulled up the bars of the secret entrance and waded into the shallow water until it was too deep for her feet to touch. She swam toward the island of land near the back and gradually, the water got shallower so she could walk to it.

She stood up, her clothes soaking wet. She took hold of her shirt and wrung it out, then her shorts. She squirmed a little. Wet clothes that stuck to her body always made her feel itchy.

Squall followed behind her, looking a little less relaxed than he had a few minutes ago. 

"Here, let me help you," Yuffie said. She took hold of his shirt and wrung it out like she had hers. He just gave her a slight nod and sat down onto the cold stones. 

"What's wrong?" 

"Nothing."

"It's okay to be sad about it," she said as she sat next to him. "It wasn't your fault."

"Just shut up, Yuffie."

Yuffie was taken aback. He hadn't said words like that to her for a long time. She bit her lip, offended and hurt, and turned away from him. 

"Fine. I _will _shut up then." 

"Fine."

"Fine!"

She stood up and walked away from him, then picked up a few stones. She flung them into the water angrily, watching Squall out of the corner of her eye. She couldn't help but remember something her mother used to tell her in Hollow Bastion.

_"You can't change who someone is, Yuffie, no matter how much you think you can."_

Maybe Squall would always be mean to her, like that. It was just who he was. He had had it rough. But did that still give him the right to treat her that way? She sighed and threw another rock into the water, not even attempting to make it skip. 

She threw in another, and another, and they all went in with a kerplunk and sank to the bottom. 

She bit her lip and looked to Squall. He was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, staring off into space with a blank expression. 

"Why are you being like this?" she asked in a sad tone. She went and stood next to him.

He gave her a sidelong glance. 

"I'm sorry, I know how touchy you are on that subject."

"I'm not touchy."

"Yes you are—look, never mind." 

She took his hand and squeezed it in her own. She gave him a small, apologetic smile and put a hand on his cheek. She couldn't resist...he was growing more and more dear to her by the day. 

"Let's go home, okay?" she said as more of a statement. What she said surprised her. Was the hotel really becoming like her home? 

She waded into the water again, still holding Squall's hand. She couldn't tell what he was feeling. He had put up his emotionless charade again. 

When they got to the hotel, Yuffie let go of Squall's hand and went into the Green Room. She collapsed on the bed and moaned. 

"Ugh, it is so hot today!" she exclaimed. Squall sat down on the edge of the bed and nodded.

"I know."

She propped her head up with her hand and stared at him. He was really attractive, and even after being with him for eight months, she was still caught in his eyes. They were blue, a brilliant shade that could make her stare into them for a long time.

She sat up and flicked on the radio. Soft melodies filled her ears. Hopefully it would loosen Squall up. She wanted to cheer him up. 

She climbed onto his lap like a little kid would and wrapped her arms around his neck. He gave her an amused look, like saying, 'What are you doing?' She buried her head in the nape of his neck and breathed in his scent. 

He put his arms around her waist and she could feel his knee moving to the beat of the song on the radio. She secretly smiled; maybe he would stop feeling sad and kiss her. 

"Are you going to kiss me now?" she mumbled into his neck. She brought her head up and leaned in closer to him and pressed her lips against his, feeling warmth in her chest that spread to her fingertips. 

He responded to her quickly and stroked her hair. She grinned as she kissed him and put a hand into his hair, not wanting it to end. 

There was a knock on the door, and Aerith walked into the room. She hesitated and said, "Erm—is this not a good time?"

Yuffie broke off the kiss and stood up, not feeling too embarrassed. "No, what is it?" 

Aerith clasped her hands together. "We made dinner, it's in our room."

Ever since they got married, Aerith and Cloud started to refer to themselves as 'we' all the time. Yuffie nodded and looked at her stomach. "Yeah, I'm starved!"

Dinner was roast beef, mashed potatoes, and green beans. Yuffie sat on the floor, picking at her food and smelling it before she hesitantly put it in her mouth.

"Yuffie, haven't you ever had roast beef before?" Squall asked, in a considerably better mood. 

"No. It smells disgusting!" she said before extending the tip of her tongue to lick at it. 

"Yuffie, be reasonable," Aerith said. She sat next to her with a full plate. Cloud nodded and shoveled some mashed potatoes into his mouth.

"Yeah," he said around swallows, "It's good."

She gave the food one last sniff before putting the fork on her plate. "I can't. Got any chips around here?" 

Yuffie stood up and started opening up cupboards and desk drawers. "I know Cloud has a secret stash in here somewhere. Where could it be?" 

She found something remotely interesting. She held up a bottle of lotion that said, 'Couple Avenue, the store for lover's,' and on the bottom it said, 'Oil that warms at the touch! Rose scented.' 

Aerith flushed pink and stuttered, "P-put that away...it's not mine!" 

Cloud had turned bright red. Squall chuckled and shook his head and continued eating.

Yuffie put it back in the drawer, holding back her laughter. 

"The junk food is down there," Aerith said, her normal color starting to return. She opened the cupboard and pulled out an unopened bag of Doritos. 

"Yes! I love these," Yuffie said and crunched into a chip. She picked out one after another and munched contently. 

"Chew with your mouth closed," Aerith said crossly. Yuffie raised her eyebrows. 

"But I am."

"Then stop chewing so loudly."

"Sorry..." she muttered. Aerith must be getting angry over the lotion rub. She couldn't stop a grin from spreading across her face before biting into another chip.

Later that night, Yuffie lay in bed next to Squall in a tired daze. She looked at him, sleeping so peacefully. She remembered something that had been on her mind, lately. She reached out and shook his shoulder.

He yawned and opened his eyes, slightly irritated. "Huh?" 

"Squall?" she asked tentatively. For awhile now, he had let her call him Squall, with the excuse that it was too tiring correcting her. She didn't buy that...she think he just wanted to give her a subtle way that said he really did lo—like her.

"Yes?"

"I have something to tell you. It's really been on my mind lately."

She paused and took a deep breath. "Squall...I..."

He seemed to stiffen. "Yes?"

"I love you."

He relaxed, and Yuffie watched in surprise as he smiled. "I love you, too, Yuf."

She sighed in relief. What had she been expecting? A frown? She gave him a soft kiss on the lips and laid her head on his chest with a content sigh and fell asleep. 

______________________________________________________________________________

_I'm done! This is definitely the last chapter. I don't even think I should have written this. And it really sucked, too. I wrote this really early in the morning when I hadn't even gone to bed yet. Usually I stay up till five or six in the morning. Now that I don't really have a plot worked for the story I had no clue what to do. _

_I am still considering a sequel, but if I do make one then it will be later. Right now, my head is empty. I have no clue what to write. In desperation I have started another story, called "Summer Nights." It should be up shortly. _

_Now...please review! Please? ^-^_


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